Arab League Peace Plan? Syrian Opposition Shoots Back. Turkey Hardens Stand on Syria
Posted by Joshua on Tuesday, November 1st, 2011
Syria agrees to an Arab League peace plan set to be disclosed today, Foreign Policy writes:
In reports released by Syrian state television, President Bashar al-Assad’s government has accepted a roadmap presented by the Arab League on Sunday to end violence. However, the Arab League has yet to receive an official response to the proposal, saying Syrian officials have claimed they are waiting for a document on the situation in Syria. The Arab League has a meeting scheduled for today, and expects to receive a reply from Syria, which it said it would announce at the headquarters in Cairo. A Lebanese official with ties to Assad’s regime said Syria presented its own proposal to the Arab League calling for “the opposition to drop weapons, the Arab states to end their funding for the weapons and the opposition, and an end to the media campaign against Syria.” Syrian opposition groups remain skeptical, however, insisting to see the agreement that they are concerned “helps the Syrian regime to remain in power while the demands of the people are clear in terms of toppling the regime.”
Accepting Arab League mediation is a smart move by Assad, if true. It will buy time and placed the ball for dialogue in the opposition court. If the opposition refuse to engage in political dialogue – as they have stated they will do – Assad will be able to shift blame for the lack of compromise toward the opposition. The international community must play along because both NATO and the US have stated that they will not intervene in Syria militarily. Even if Assad is using the Arab League mediation effort to win time for his effort to suppress the opposition, the Arab League will take a more forward role. If dialogue fails, as everyone seems to expect, the Arab League will have to take concrete steps to isolate and condemn Syria. The Syria opposition and Western leaders will hope that at the end of the day this will place greater pressure on China, and perhaps even Russia, to condemn Syria in the UN. The West and possibly Turkey will be positioned then to tighten sanctions further and contemplate the military involvement that all disavow today.
It has been a bloody week in Syria.
This Tuesday – A prominent Sunni businessman, Muhammad Awais (أقدم مسلحون مجهولون يوم الثلاثاء على قتل الصناعي محمد الويس بالقرب من مدينة سراقب )was assassinated outside of his factory on the outskirts of Aleppo (processed food). His brother and three others were also shot with him.
This micro-bus full of Alawi civilians were killed today in Homs. A friend in Homs said that 11 were killed with axes. There were protests in Al-Zahara afterwards, an Alawi neighborhood in Homs.
Opposition activists said at least 21 people were killed by government troops over the weekend, including at least 11 who died when Syrian forces pounded the western city of Homs with tanks, sustaining fire with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Four people were killed in Hama and one each in Hasaka, Daraa, Idlib, Keseh, Zabadany and Deir Ezzor, according to the Local Coordination Committees (LCC) of Syria, an opposition group that organizes and documents protests in Syria. Government forces killed six people they described as terrorists Saturday, and arrested 20, the SANA reported Sunday. SANA said four members of the security forces had been killed in the clashes.
Andrew Gilligan, of the Telegraph reports that the Opposition is beginning to kill as many Syrians as the Army.
“the death toll among the security forces is now starting to surpass that of the protesters. … Last weekend, across the country, at least 35 members of the army and police died. As the regime reaps what it has sown, what’s happening in this part of Syria looks increasingly like armed conflict.”
The Tunisian Annahda Leadership kicked out the Syrian ambassador and recognized the SNC.
Coordinating Committees in Syria – Who are the real leaders of the revolution and how Islamist are they? According to one friend who has spent time with a number of tansiqiyat leaders:
The tansiqiyat are nor one group of people. They are probably more than 500 groups who do not share many things other than hating the regime. Some of them are not Muslims, many are not religious at all, some drink alcohol and didn’t fast in Ramadan.
The tansiqiyat in villages and suburbs are mostly conservative and some are islamist. those in the city are more politically aware and secular. I met some in the cities who are young engineers, doctors, bankers etc. all are very tech-savvy.
The thing is that the tech-savvy well-prepared Ikhwan and FB revolution page ( and later SNC members ) are well connected with the tansiqiyat since day one. They are the central command for many isolated, lost and clueless tansiqiyat. So they fell under their charm as the only saviors!
This is unfortunate as the internal opposition is only in control of smaller number of tansiqiyat as it is more dangerous and easier to get caught than communicating with people through skype under the safety of TOR. So the poor tansiqyat were thrown to the lap of the islamists and the SNC. it’s not who they are it’s who they were pushed to be.
Turkey is hardening it line toward Syria. It has signaled possible support for a buffer zone to protect Syrian civilians if Damascus continues its crackdown on democracy protests, as tensions rise between the two former strategic partners. The financial Times reports that Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey’s foreign minister, told the FT that Ankara was preparing targeted sanctions against Damascus and left the door open for more drastic steps at a later date, such as a buffer zone or a no fly-zone on Syrian territory.
Syrian Colonel Says He Leads Armed Rebellion: L.A. Times, 2011-11-02
In the interview, Col. Assad declined to say whether his forces were conducting cross-border operations from Turkey. He appealed to the international community to impose a “no fly” zone similar to what the North Atlantic Treaty Organization enforced over Libya. He also called for a “buffer zone” in Syria that would provide protection for fleeing civilians — and create a haven for his forces.
Reporting from Antakya, Turkey, and Beirut— From his heavily guarded enclave in Turkey, a leading Syrian defector says he is heading an armed rebellion against the regime of President Bashar Assad. The brutality of the regime in Damascus left him …
Erdogan Says Syrian Political Structures ‘Totalitarian’:
Nov. 2 (Bloomberg) — Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Syria is suffering from “totalitarian” political structures. Erdogan, speaking today in Berlin at a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, said he cannot accept what’s happening in Syria…. Noting that Syria and Turkey share a 910-kilometer border and have a common destiny, he underlined the importance of unity and order in Syria, saying Turkey would be hurt if Syria’s national unity and territorial integrity were harmed.
Assad’s interview on Russian TV Sunday Oct 30, 2011
According to Al-Qabas daily, the Arab League ministerial delegation to Damascus warned Assad that failure to resolve the crisis within an Arab fold would mean “internationalizing” the issue…. “This would mean Syria should expect a foreign intervention and a painful international blockade on the economy and other aspects,” it added.
Gulf State Ministers make Demand that Syria Introduce Radical Reforms and Democracy in exchange for Lifting Sanctions and an End to Demonization Campaign against Syria – Monday, October 31, 2011: Elections
أنباء شبه مؤكدة من مصادرنا في الدوحة مقربة من الوفد السوري بقيادة رئيس الدبلوماسية السورية الأستاذ وليد المعلم, افادت هذه الأنباء عن رفض القيادة السورية لورقة العمل التي طرحت في اللقاء مع اللجنة الوزارية العربية, وهنالك كلام حول أن الوفد السوري تقدم بورقة بديلة تحتوي على جملة من النقاط في مقدمتها, إيقاف الحرب الإعلامية ضد سورية, ومنع تمويل وتهريب السلاح عبر الحدود, ورفع العقوبات الظالمة على الدولة السورية. مقابل جملة من الإصلاحات الجذرية والسريعة وأولها إجراء انتخابات لتشكيل جمعية وطنية سورية لوضع دستور جديد للبلاد وإقامة انتخابات رئاسية تعددية. وهذا بانتظار تأكيد ذلك من مصادرنا الأخرى في الدوحة.
Russia Opposes Isolating Syria, Interfax Reports, Cites Lavrov, 2011-11-01, by Paul Abelsky
Nov. 1 (Bloomberg) — Russia is opposed to isolating Syria, Interfax reported, citing Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
NATO Chief Rules Out No-fly Zone For Syria, 2011-10-31
TRIPOLI (AFP)–NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen ruled out the possibility of a no-fly zone for Syria, in remarks to an AFP correspondent as he travelled Monday to Tripoli to mark the end of the alliance’s air war in Libya. “It’s totally ruled out. We have no intention whatsoever to intervene in Syria,” Rasmussen said when asked if there was a possibility NATO would now spearhead a no-fly zone in Syria….
Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani told reporters after the meeting that Assad risks forcing an international intervention if he allows the violence to continue.
Syria’s Assad on media offensive to defy critics By Nehal El-Sherif, DPA
….US-led consultations are secretly taking place, in renewed international efforts to bring back the Syrian file to the United Nations Security Council. China and Russia vetoed a UN resolution this month critical of al-Assad’s crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, which would have targeted his government with further sanctions. Syrian opposition figure Fawaz Zakri said that the impetus to taking the Syria file back to the Security Council came after comments by China’s special envoy to the Middle East. Wu Sike, who had visited Damascus last week, said that the “dangerous situation in Syria cannot continue,” adding that “Syria must show some flexibility to help the Arab League implement its proposal.” “These statements have encouraged the world again to make a decision because it means a change in the Chinese position,” said Zakri, who is based in Turkey…..
Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan Calls Syrian Protests ’Glorious’
Sen. Toomey Co-Sponsors Syria Sanctions Act Of 2011, 2011-11-01. Sen. Patrick J. Toomey (R-PA) News Release
October 31, 2011 (Federal Information & News Dispatch) — WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) co-sponsored the bipartisan Syria Sanctions Act (S. 1472), directing the president to implement stronger sanctions on Syria. The increased pressure on Syrian President Bashar al- Assad will send an important message that his tyrannical and violent actions
Monkey Cage: How Important is Turkey’s Support of the Free Syrian Army?
2011-10-30
This week, the New York Times reported that Turkey has begun to actively support the Free Syrian Army by providing shelter in a camp guarded by the Turkish military. From the Times: Turkey is hosting an armed opposition group waging an insurgency …
Dan Byman, Peter Chalk, et al also identified sanctuary as the most important type of support an insurgent group can receive, as it allows rebels to move and organize freely, to import weapons, and to train for operations. However, they write:
Foreign assistance in the form of international sanctuaries, while often extremely useful to guerrillas, can also have a negative impact. In moving abroad, insurgents risk cutting themselves off from their base of popular support. Resting and recuperating across a border, while providing obvious benefits, also carries the danger of operational isolation from potentially lucrative political and military targets.
Michel Kilo’s view of Assad in an interview:
” يجب أن نرى الأمر ضمن سياق كلي .. علينا أن نسعى إلى حل سياسي يأخذنا جميع إلى تسوية تاريخية و إلى الديمقراطية .. فإذا كان بشار الأسد يؤيد هذا الحل فنحن سنحتفظ ببشار الاسد إن كان ذلك بايدينا .. و اذا كان لا يريد ذلك فاعتقد أنه عليه ان يذهب
See this very useful website: syriapolicy.com
Hundreds of students clashed today in Kalamoon university (loyalists vs. Opposition) after a day of similar debate which took place in the university. These are the sons and daughters of the richest people in syria, studying at an expensive university (by SYRian standards). If this is the case among the “elite” then no wonder people are killing each other in the villages. The university is closed for the rest of the week. Can someone check with Sami Mubayed on what really happened?
Assad: challenge Syria at your peril,
By Andrew Gilligan, in Damascus, 29 Oct 2011, Telegraph
Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, has warned that Western action against his country would cause an “earthquake” that would “burn the whole region”. President Assad admitted that ‘many mistakes’ had been made by his forces in the early part of the uprising, but insisted that only terrorists’ were now being targeted
In his first interview with a Western journalist since Syria’s seven-month uprising began, President Assad told The Sunday Telegraph that intervention against his regime could cause “another Afghanistan”.
Western countries “are going to ratchet up the pressure, definitely,” he said. “But Syria is different in every respect from Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen. The history is different. The politics is different.
“Syria is the hub now in this region. It is the fault line, and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake … Do you want to see another Afghanistan, or tens of Afghanistans?
“Any problem in Syria will burn the whole region. If the plan is to divide Syria, that is to divide the whole region.”
Thousands of anti-government demonstrators took to the streets in two Syrian cities on Friday to demand the imposition of a Libyan-style no-fly zone over the country. According to the United Nations, at least 3,000 civilians, including 187 children, have been killed during protests against the regime. Thousands more have been imprisoned. The government says 1,200 members of the security forces have also died.
President Assad admitted that “many mistakes” had been made by his forces in the early part of the uprising, but insisted that only “terrorists” were now being targeted.
“We have very few police, only the army, who are trained to take on al-Qaeda,” he said. “If you sent in your army to the streets, the same thing would happen. Now, we are only fighting terrorists. That’s why the fighting is becoming much less.”
On Friday alone, however, opposition groups claimed that 40 people were killed by the regime, and government troops shelled a district of Homs, a centre of opposition.
Seventeen soldiers also died in overnight clashes with suspected army deserters in the city, which foreign journalists are forbidden to enter.
Syria was condemned yesterday by Arab League foreign ministers for its “continued killings of civilians”.
The number of protesters appeared to fall earlier this month, but has increased again after the death of Col Gaddafi gave opposition groups new heart. A general strike affected much of the southern part of the country.
President Assad insisted that he had responded differently to the Arab Spring than other, deposed Arab leaders. “We didn’t go down the road of stubborn government,” he said. “Six days after [the protests began] I commenced reform. People were sceptical that the reforms were an opiate for the people, but when we started announcing the reforms, the problems started decreasing e_SLps This is when the tide started to turn. This is when people started supporting the government.”
Some Damascus-based opposition leaders say the reforms, which include laws ostensibly allowing demonstrations and political parties, are a start, but not enough. However, the leaders of the main protests say they are meaningless and President Assad must go.
“The problem with the government is that their dialogue is shallow and just a tool to gain time,” said Kadri Jamil, of Kassioun, a Damascus-based opposition group. “They have to act to begin real dialogue because the security solution has failed. We have one to two months before we pass the point of no return.”
One Homs-based opposition activist said: “Killing people is not an act of reform. We aren’t calling for economic or even political reform under Assad, but for the departure of this bloodstained president and free elections.”
President Assad said: “The pace of reform is not too slow. The vision needs to be mature. It would take only 15 seconds to sign a law, but if it doesn’t fit your society, you’ll have division … It’s a very complicated society.”
He described the uprising as a “struggle between Islamism and pan-Arabism [secularism], adding: “We’ve been fighting the Muslim Brotherhood since the 1950s and we are still fighting with them.”
In interviews in Damascus, some without government minders, secular Syrians and members of the country’s substantial Christian and Alawite minorities said they supported the Assad regime for fear of their positions under a new government. Those attending a large demonstration in support of the regime last Wednesday did not appear to be coerced, according to independent observers.
However, interviews, even some with minders present, revealed widespread and vocal discontent over corruption and living standards.
CNN: Syria sets out to draft new constitution, 2011-10-30
Syrians aiming to write a new constitution for the strife-torn country will meet for the first time on Monday, the state news agency reported Sunday, after a weekend of intense violence. Syria sets out to draft new constitution Sun, 30 Oct 2011 08 …
Guardian (GB): Is Syria next for Nato?, 2011-11-02, Robert Dreyfuss
Now that Nato is closing up shop in Libya, will it turn to Syria? Right now, the answer is no. But if the fragmented Syrian opposition – bolstered by Turkey, a member of Nato, which is turning increasingly against the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad – manages to set up a Benghazi-like enclave either inside Syria or across the border in Turkey, anything goes. To be sure, there are lots of differences between Libya and Syria.
Syria Mining Lebanon Border, 2011-11-01, By BASSEM MROUE
Serhaniyeh, Lebanon (AP) — Syria is planting landmines along parts of the country’s border with Lebanon as refugees stream out of the country …. A Syrian official familiar with government strategy claimed the mines are meant to prevent arms smuggling into Syria.
AP Exclusive: New Signs of Syria-Pakistan Nuke Tie, 2011-11-01, By DESMOND BUTLER and GEORGE JAHN
Washington (AP) — U.N. investigators have identified a previously unknown complex in Syria that bolsters suspicions that the Syrian government worked with A.Q. Khan, the father of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, to acquire technology that could make nuclear arms. The buildings in northwest Syria closely match the design of a uranium enrichment plant provided to Libya when Moammar Gadhafi was trying to build nuclear weapons under Khan’s guidance, officials told The Associated Press. The U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency also has obtained correspondence between Khan and a Syrian government official, Muhidin Issa, who proposed scientific cooperation and a visit to Khan’s laboratories following Pakistan’s successful nuclear test in 1998.
The complex, in the city of Al-Hasakah, now appears to be a cotton-spinning plant, and investigators have found no sign that it was ever used for nuclear production. But given that Israeli warplanes destroyed a suspected plutonium production reactor in Syria in 2007, the unlikely coincidence in design suggests Syria may have been pursuing two routes to an atomic bomb: uranium as well as plutonium. Details of the Syria-Khan connection were provided to the AP by a senior diplomat with knowledge of IAEA investigations and a former U.N. investigator.
Syria’s government confident, but country polarized, By Liz Sly, in Wash Post: October 28
DAMASCUS, SYRIA — President Bashar al-Assad’s government is confident that it has weathered the worst of the turmoil sweeping Syria and will soon be able to overcome any remaining challenges to its survival.
Whether that confidence is justified — and how broadly it is shared — is in question. Even as the government boasts that it is prevailing over the eight-month-old uprising, the economy is imploding, protests persist in many parts of the country and an armed rebellion is stirring…..
The failure of the Syrian opposition to present a united front and articulate a clear vision of what a post-Assad future would look like is also keeping silent the majority of Syrians, who have neither joined the protests nor support the government, Western diplomats say….
LA Times [Reg]: Syrian Americans in Syria feel unfairly targeted by sanctions, 2011-10-27
Ahmad is not one of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s cronies. But since August, when the U.S. imposed its most recent sanctions on Syria — which Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said targeted “Assad and dozens of his cronies” in the wake … Under the order signed by President Obama, an American working in Syria is deemed an exported service and in violation of the sanctions. The livelihoods of some have been devastated….. He said one Syrian American doctor he knows had left Syria rather than risk getting into trouble for treating patients. Others, faced with having to end their business interests and radically alter their lives in Syria, have decided to stay anyway. Still others are holding out hope that the sanctions won’t be enforced on American citizens not connected to the regime.
Austrian Airlines will cancel all of its flights from and to Syria as of 1 December.
Goldman Sachs Rips Off Libya, Donald Trump Admits Screwing Gaddafi –
Bouthaina Shaaban top adviser to the president, admits that corruption remains a serious problem in Syria. “Rami Makhlouf isn’t the only one who made money in the past period,” she says in an interview at the presidential palace. “There are many people, big capitalists, who made a lot of money.” But, she argues, the government has taken steps to reform. “This crisis has made us 1,000 more times more aware,” Ms. Shaaban says….
Syrian opposition struggles to unite By Zeina Karam
Associated Press / October 28, 2011
The council’s leadership — currently headed by Burhan Ghalioun, a professor at the Sorbonne in Paris — will rotate every three months, reflecting the absence of a single popular leader who stands out among the country’s disparate groups.
The council’s formation is a remarkable achievement given Syria’s complex sectarian and ethnic makeup.
But the group has yet to gain the recognition of any countries other than Libya and faces criticism from opposition groups that declined to join, accusing it of trying to monopolize the movement.
Haitham al-Maleh, an 80-year-old lawyer who was imprisoned for years for his political activism, also accused the SNC of sidelining major figures and said the group never consulted him.
“We have a 50-year history of struggle against this regime, while nobody had heard of these people before,” he said of the SNC leaders.
Bassma Kodmani, another Paris-based academic and a spokeswoman for the council, rejected the accusations and said the SNC was open for all Syrians. “We did not exclude anybody,” she said, insisting the council represented the majority of Syrian society.
An attempt in July to hold a dual meeting in Damascus and Istanbul was canceled when security forces besieged the conference location in Damascus a day before it was scheduled to begin and shot dead 14 protesters in the area.
Foreign leaders have welcomed the formation of the SNC, but say the opposition needs more work to become an effective political force.
“The opposition must still improve its organizational and outreach efforts,” said U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford, who returned to Washington this week over security concerns.
He said developing consensus around a specific political and economic plan would help persuade Sunni business elites and other Syrians still on the fence to defect from the regime.
“There is a huge need for the council to explain what exactly they will bring to Syria,” Ford said during an address this month to The Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
A key sticking point is whether to ask for foreign intervention like the NATO airstrikes that helped oust former Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi.
The SNC’s founding statement rejects foreign intervention, but its members are calling for “international protection for civilians,” an ambiguous statement that leaves the door open for interpretation. The NATO action in Libya was carried out under a U.N. mandate to protect civilians but ultimately proved key to the rebel victory that led to Gadhafi’s death.
Haytham Manna, a Paris-based dissident who heads the external branch of a smaller rival group called the National Committee for Democratic Change, objects to any possibility of military intervention.
“The Libyan experience is a painful one,” he said. “There has been so much destruction and I don’t wish for my country anything like that.”
Manna, whose brother was killed by Syrian security forces in the southern town of Daraa during a funeral in August, says the SNC had no right to say they represented Syria.
“Having one representative is dangerous and reminds us of the one-party rule which we have been fighting for decades,” he said.
Another key point of contention is whether to negotiate with the regime. Some dissidents point to dialogue as one of the only ways out, but others reject the idea as long as the government keeps up its deadly military assault on protesters.
Extract from an interview with Burhan Gallioun, leader of the Syrian National Council, sent out by a Kurdish group:
In answer to a question about the fear of the Kurds and Arabisation in Syria, and institutional racial discrimination suffered by the Kurds since 1958 when the name of the county changed to the United Arab Republic:
The interviewer asked:How can you make a Kurd feel assured about his future in Syria,when you are hoisting a state emblem of the new Syrian state which is Arabised, I mean, from the beginning he is excluded, therefore the conflict between the poles of the opposition is not just about the goal of toppling of the regime, but there are fundamental significant differences between the poles of the opposition?
Gallioun: No, no, there was exaggeration by some of the Kurdish brothers who raised the idea that it should be the Syrian Republic rather than the Syrian Arab Republic, but … of course, Syria is an Arab state .. there is no discussion about this .. there is no debate that Syria is an Arab country because the majority of the population are Arabs … because participation in the history, culture and geography does not mean denying the existence of groups and clusters of other nations, and speaking other languages, just as we say France is France, but of course there are Muslims and immigrants from Asian countries. The discussion is not about the identity for Syria. Kurds … you cannot tell the Syrian Arabs that you are not Arabs … is that OK? Here is the wall.
Interviewer: Is this not a condition of the civil state?
Gallioun: No, no there are no conditions ……….. the media created this story that there is deep disagreement about the identity of Syria, the identity of Syria is clear …………
The Kurdish people are very upset about the comments made above. They are indigenous to the area, not immigrants, and they are a separate nation from the Arabs. The SNC leader has the same view of Kurds as the current regime in Syria.
Unreported World this time from Syria – Channel 4 documentary film – 21.10.2011
Facebook and the Arab Spring: A medium or a tool?
Austria Money-Printers Expensed Viagra, Bribed Syria: Standard, 2011-10-28 , By Boris Groendahl
Oct. 28 (Bloomberg) — Managers of Austrian money-printer Oesterreichische Banknoten- und Sicherheitsdruck GmbH may havepaid bribes to get orders from Syria and and may have expensed items including Viagra, newspaper Der Standard reported, citing an internal review of the Austrian central bank, OeBS’s owner. The auditors found “unusual” expenses of as much as 600,000 euros, which included charges claimed for furniture in a Romanian apartment as well as for Pfizer Inc.’s impotence drug, the Vienna-based daily said. They also found payments of as much as 14 million euros ($20 million) made to win contracts to print Syrian bank notes, the paper reported.
14 million euro is a large bribe for a “printing” contract. Adeeb Mayale confirms that the printing contract was worth 29 million euro but he does not say whether this 29 million euro was yearly payment or one off. The Austrian prosecutors will have more to say on this perhaps حاكم مصرف سورية المركزي ينفي تهم دفع رشاوى لدار طباعة العملة النمساوية
POMES’s From Washington covers State Department statements and WINEP views
Ambassador Pulled from Syria: Robert Ford was brought back to Washington due to credible threats against his safety in Syria, though he has not formally been recalled. A report released by Amnesty International alleged that hospitals have become “instruments of repression.” David Schenker argued that the administration should “focus on expediting the end of the regime,” and Elliott Abrams noted that the goal of “U.S. policy should be to end the violence and lay the bases for a stable democratic system.” French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe announced that Assad’s regime “will almost certainly fall under the pressure of protests and sanctions.” Jeffrey White said the risks of not intervening in Syria are great. Jim Brann asserted that the West has been reticent to intervene because ”Syria is seen as being much more problematic [than Libya].” Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford met with Hillary Clinton to update her on the situation in Syria; Victoria Nuland said, “the violence needs to end…that the arrest and the torture and the brutality needs to come to an end.”
Juan Cole writes of Tunisia
Tunisia’s election outcome gives 41% to the Muslim fundamentalist party Al-Nahda. One of the other two winners is the Rally for the Republic– of long-time political exile Moncef al-Marzouqi. Then the third major party is al-Takattul or the Democratic Forum for Labor and Freedoms, headed by Mustapha Ben Jaafar.The latter two mentioned are secular, and al-Nahda needs these secular allies to run the government, not to mention achieve a majority. The al-Nahda fundamentalist party, moreover, told me last June that they want a pluralist system that makes a place for believing Muslims, but that they will not dictatorially impose policies on one another. I asked about liquor and they admitted that they would try to discourage drinking. But they said they would do so by increasing taxes on alcohol, just as governments have done with smoking.If the al-Nahda semi-victory (they did not get the majority and so did not ‘win’ in the American sense) contributes to an opening up of Tunisia to a variety of styles of life, if it makes Tunisia more multi-cultural, then that would be all to the good. There is an admitted danger that al-Nahda will try to limit freedom of speech. Tunisia is now the only Arab country without print censorship, and you wonder if that will last. Marzouqi and al-Takattul bear a special responsibility for keeping Tunisia free.
The murder brigades of Misrata
Gadhafi’s demise was just a part of a vast revenge killing spree
By Daniel Wlliams
Misrata steadfastness
Libyan rebels secure prisoners in the back of a pick-up truck. The graffiti on the truck, in Arabic, reads, “Misrata steadfastness.” (Credit: AP)
MISRATA, Libya — If anyone is surprised by the apparent killing of Moammar Gadhafi while in the custody of militia members from the town of Misrata, they shouldn’t be.
More than 100 militia brigades from Misrata have been operating outside of any official military and civilian command since Tripoli fell in August. Members of these militias have engaged in torture, pursued suspected enemies far and wide, detained them and shot them in detention, Human Rights Watch has found. Members of these brigades have stated that the entire displaced population of one town, Tawergha, which they believe largely supported Gadhafi avidly, cannot return home.
As the war in Libya comes to an end, the pressing need for accountability and reconciliation is clear. The actions of the Misrata brigades are a gauge of how difficult that will be, and Misrata is not alone in its call for vengeance. In the far west, anti-Gadhafi militias from the Nafusa Mountains have looted and burned homes and schools of tribes that supported the deposed dictator. Anti-Gadhafi militias from Zuwara have looted property as they demanded compensation for damage they suffered during the war.
The apparent execution of 53 pro-Gadhafi supporters in a hotel in Sirte apparently under control of Misrata fighters is a bad omen. ….
Robert Worth in the NYTImes – “the-arab-intellectuals-who-didnt-roar
“Everything in Colonel Qaddafi’s Libya was styled “revolutionary.” When the rebels overthrew his government this year, they found it difficult to separate the names of their own revolutionary councils from the ones they were overthrowing.”
Portraits of a People, by Amal Hanano at Jadiliyya -Portrait of a Leader: Burhan Ghalioun
One late summer day in 2001, Burhan Ghalioun was sitting in Damascus with Riad Seif, discussing the political climate in Syria and the heavy cloud of repression and despair that once again hovered over the country just over one year into Bashar al-Assad’s presidency. Ghalioun asked his friend, “Why did you close the forums?” referring to the political and cultural “salons” that had thrived in Damascus and across Syria that spring, representing a new era of civility under the insecure, and in many people’s eyes, illegitimate leader. Seif replied that the regime had threatened the participants with plans to issue a law making the forums illegal. Ghalioun chided, “You made a mistake. You should have let them come and close the forums themselves.” Seif told his friend he was willing to reopen his Forum for National Dialogue if Ghalioun would give the first lecture. Ghalioun agreed. The Sorbonne professor of political sociology returned to France, prepared the lecture, and within a few weeks he came back to Syria. He remembers, “It was the first ticket I bought out of my own pocket to give a lecture. On September 5th, I gave my lecture and stayed a week. Because of that lecture, ten people who attended were arrested, Riad included.” They were all sentenced between two and ten years in prison; the forum was shut down. And that was the end of the Damascus Spring. Read more
Comments (634)
Tara said:
The regime accepted the AL’s initiative without reservation. SNC should agree to the dialogue and insist that the goal of the dialogue is to achieve the legitimate demand of the Syrian people which is transition of power. They should insist on the dialogue to take place in Cairo to humiliate Bashar further. Demonstration should be continued and intensified. If the killing continues and I expect it to continue, the dialogue should stop after the first death and the AL should declare failure. Then the count down will be started.
November 2nd, 2011, 1:24 pm
Dale Andersen said:
From the EU/CIA/Salafist/al Qaeda/Jew Press:
“…Syrians will have to take up arms in self-defense unless the world intervenes to protect civilians protesting against President Bashar al-Assad’s rule, former Syrian Vice-President Abdul-Halim Khaddam said on Wednesday…”
November 2nd, 2011, 1:41 pm
Tara said:
Dale
Khaddam is an arch-enemy of the Syrian people just like Bashar. He is not in any position to give an advise.
November 2nd, 2011, 1:44 pm
jad said:
Who is writing the news round? Usualy Dr. Landis put his name clear under his words, Alex too.
Regarding this piece of news:
“The Tunisian Annahda Leadership kicked out the Syrian ambassador and recognized the SNC.”
It doesn’t sound correct at all (more of a rumor than news I guess) since the government of Tunisia is not formed yet to take such high level national decision and this news is not published on any official Tunisian website.
Please link the sources otherwise remove the news, Thank you.
November 2nd, 2011, 1:48 pm
Atheist Syrian Salafist Against Dictatorships said:
Hi Tara
#1
Not so fast please, before accepting to dialogue with al-3sabeh we should send in the journalists, observers and hear what they have to say about the cessation of violence against the people.
I am willing to bet that shabbehet-l-nizam will be out as per usual, wearing civics and carrying concealed weapons and will continue to attack demonstrators. The top gangesters will just throw their hands up in the air and say “3sabat musalla7a”. And how many want to bet that orders will be issued to shoot at journalists and AL observers venturing too close to the action?
The Assadist Mafiosi and Associates didn’t manage to stay in power for 42 years through brute force alone; there are many cunning, devious people staying up late planning and scheming. Be prepared for many weeks of cat and mouse ploys.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:05 pm
ann said:
Syria. The Pretext to Wage a “Just War”: How “Humanitarian Organizations” Provide a “Human Face” to War
November 2, 2011
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=27420
“Absolutism, tempered by assassination.” (Ernst Munster, 1766-1839.)
Oh well, time to move on folks, Nothing to see here. Now there is an oil man, who spent many years in the United States as “interim Prime Minister”, shoed in, in Libya (i) it’s time to go a-toppling again.
Don’t mention the dead, distraught, destroyed, the mass graves and mass murders, by NATO and their ethnic cleansers at ground level, near certainly tutored by their Special Services. There’s oil to pump, rebuilding contracts to be divvied out, a bit of looting – and near certainly no accounting for all Libya’s frozen assets, being minimally returned in dribs and drabs. Remember Iraq’s missing billions? Another day, another precedent, another grand theft?
And that well worn propaganda hand book, battered, dog eared, but trusty, is back.
It has, in fact, seemingly, been leafed back to over twenty years ago, to August 1990, to be exact. Then, Kuwaiti babies had been torn from their incubators, thrown to the hospital floor and left to die, by Iraqi soldiers, said a “nurse” claiming to work in Kuwait – backed by Amnesty International.(ii, iii) It was entirely untrue, but it was arguably the tipping point, justification for the coming 42 day bombardment and the first ruination of Iraq, which was “Operation Desert Storm.”
In August this year, it was alleged, babies in Syria were left to die in their incubators, after President Bashar al Assad had the electricity turned off. Pictures showed pathetic little souls, inexplicably blood smeared – and huddled.
However, some meticulous digging by Ali Abunima (iv) throws up many questions. Certainly the doctored picture was earlier in an Egyptian publication, showing overcrowded conditions in the country’s paediatric units – the babies in that one,were pink and healthy, nevertheless.
As the fog of disinformation again obscures much, it is worth remembering that President Assad trained as a doctor, worked as one for some years, then did further post-graduate training, qualifying as an opthamologist at London’s prestigious St Mary’s Teaching Hospital group. He had planned medicine as a career, which was cut short when his brother, designated his father’s heir, was killed.
Accusations of targeting babies towards a man who had devoted years to studying medicine, should surely at least be questioned. Further, in an atmosphere of unrest, it would hardly win over the dissenters.
On 25th October, Amnesty produced a thirty six page Report(v) largely taken from media outlets, and non-attributed videos, “documenting” gruesome abuses in Syria’s hospitals, including a variation on babies ripped from incubators, “ … at least one unconscious patient having his ventilator removed …” before being taken away, an unnamed “health worker” had said.
Four days after the Report was published Amnesty had organized a demonstration in London: “No more Blood – No more Fear”, which rallied outside the Syrian Embassy.
Chris Doyle, Director of the Council for Arab British Understanding told demonstrators that: “Even donkeys have become targets of the Syrian army” and that water had been cut off because the government claimed it had been polluted by halucigens. The cynic might think that had all the validity of claims Colonel Quaddafi gave Viagra to his troops – and Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
However, Doyle shone one light, demanding that “human rights organizations” be allowed in to the country. If they have relied on second hand sources for their Report, has it any more validity than Kuwait’s incubator babies?
Franklin Lamb thinks not and has produced a detailed piece as to why, from seemingly unrestricted, recent, first hand experience in Syrian hospitals.(vi.) He also has telephone numbers of medical practitioners wishing to invite Amnesty researchers to see for themselves.
Syria, it seems, is in the regime change frame. Today, it has been revealed by a; ‘’a senior diplomat … and a former UN investigator”, who, of course, “both spoke on condition of anonymity”, that Syria has a previously unknown nuclear power plant. (vii.)
“Suspicions” are that Syria worked with Abdul Qadeer Khan, “father of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, to acquire nuclear weapons technology.”
The buildings “closely” resemble those of Libya’s when they were trying to build nuclear weapons. However, before you head for the fall out shelter or reach for a 2,000 lb., bunker buster:
“The complex, in the city of Hasakah, now appears to be a cotton-spinning plant, and investigators have found no sign it was ever used for nuclear production.”
Israel, of course, bombed a “suspected” nuclear plant in 2007, legality, as ever, redundant.
Syria is also currently being accused of laying mines along the Lebanese border, to prevent insurgents, crossing it. Perhaps it is, who knows? If so, a way to discourage, might be to put out a hand of friendship. If threatened sufficiently most might resort to protective measures.
It is surely coincidence that the unrest and the focus on Syria began shortly after the arrival of the first US Ambassador to the country since 2005.
Ambassador Robert Ford, arrived in Damascus on 16th January this year. By 31st January, there was a call for a “Day of Rage” on 4th February. As Michel Chossudovsy has pointed out (viii) the Ambassador has an interesting cv., diplomacy possibly not being one of his towering strengths. He is currently temporarily withdrawn, having been pelted with tomatoes.
Syria has been under embargo since 2004. The US has frozen all the country’s assets. Yet Syria opened it’s borders to two million Iraqi refugees, after the 2003 invasion, with no recompense. Libya had one hundred thousand. The displaced keep fleeing and dying, the region lives in constant fear as to who is the next target.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International Director Kate Allen, cites Syrian diplomats as representatives of “repression and injustice.”
Perhaps we need to look a little closer to our Western home, for that.
Incidentally, 31st October, the day Libya was declared liberated and NATO’s “mission” over, was the anniversary of the US, UK and France’s bombing of Egypt in 1956, to force the re-opening of the Suez Canal. On the same day in 1968, Lyndon B. Johnson announced the cessation of the bombardment of North Vietnam.
Unending decades of lies dressed as liberation, and asset grabs as tyrants who terrorize.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:13 pm
jad said:
Aljazeera and Alarabiya won’t be allowed to get into Syria to report at this stage:
توب نيوز
من مصادرنا في الجامعة العربية بأن أحد نقاط الخلاف التي تنازلت عنها قطر هي إدخال قناتي الجزيرة والعربية إلى داخل سورية, وقد رشحت المعلومات بان اللجنة الوزارية رضخت لشروط الوفد السوري بعدم السماح لهاتين المحطتين التحريضيتين بالدخول إلى سورية تحت بند السماح لوسائل الإعلام المستقل في المبادرة العربية, إلا في حال اثبتت هاتين المحطتين حياديتهما في تغطية الاحداث ومصداقيتهما.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:19 pm
Tara said:
Dear ASSAD
Hello ASSAD. I agree. Send observers and international press first then intensify the demonstrations. I do not trust the regime at all. I know the killing will not stop. I am just hoping that the opposition is more cunning. Outright refusal would only prolong the time to topple Bashar as the balance of power remains in favor of Bashar at the present time. The opposition must demonstrate to Russia, China, and the AL that Bashar is lying. At that time, UNSC resolution against Bashar would not be vetoed. Only then, the balance of power would tilt towards the opposition and Bashar days will be numbered. If they refuse the dialogue from the get-go, then the status quo is maintained for a long time.
I was hoping Bashar commits the fatal mistake of shunning the initiative. He did not. He realizes it is his last chance and he is scared. His empty threats of an earthquake is an indication of either fear or complete detachment of reality. No earthquake is going to happen to save the blue-eyed doctor. Iran is smarter than that in my opinion.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:24 pm
Arel said:
In your round up news
“””
In reports released by Syrian state television, President Bashar al-Assad’s government has accepted a roadmap presented by the Arab League on Sunday to end violence. However, the Arab League has yet to receive an official response to the proposal
“””
The links are to the University of Oklahoma and therefore inaccessible by anybody outside.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:25 pm
Areal said:
Amnesty International report on Syrian Hospitals
REALITY : A flawed lazy report based on Al Jazeera , .., Youtube
BEIRUT, (SANA) – Professor Franklin Lamb, member of the Amnesty International (AI) criticized the AI’s report on the health sector in Syria published on October 25th under the title “Health Crisis: Syrian Government Targets the Wounded and Health Workers”.
In an interview with al-Manar TV website, Lamb said “Amnesty International claimed, without convincing material, probative or relevant evidence that the Syrian authorities have turned hospital since March 2011 into instruments of repression in order to crush protests and demonstrations and in some cases they were prevented from medical care while others taken to hospital have been detained or have simply disappeared.”
He said that despite the great distinction between Syria and Libya, their medical professions and current challenges, the AI’s conclusion from its “research” in Syria is virtually identical to what it concluded from its investigation in Libya on the same subject.
Lamb added that the report consisted significantly of collecting Al Jazeera and Al Arabia type media accounts including the dubious reports on the same subject by the CNN, and sundry anonymous Youtube clips.
“AI offers as its proof of these claims the weakest and seemingly most competition-driven support of any Amnesty International reports I have read. It reeks of yet another orientalist double standard and ignores similar claims from citizens in western countries of similar actions by their governments,” the professor said.
He added that “I recently had the opportunity to visit some of Syria’s largest state-run Ministry of Health hospitals, accompanied by administrators and medical staffs, such as Damascus Hospital and al- Mowasat,” indicating that the AI could have done so instead of relying on reports and it still has the opportunity to.
Lamd said that he was able to meet some of health workers at Damascus General Hospital and discuss issues raised by Amnesty International, including Dr. Mahmoud Naji, the Director of the Emergency Department and Intensive Care Unit at Damascus Hospital and Dr. Adib Mahmoud, the Hospital administrator.
He noted that the workers in the medical field in Syria complained of the AI’ s Amnesty International’s “gratuitous defamation of Syria’s medical community, indicating that the AI’s charges that Syrian medical staff humiliate or refuse to treat patients brought laughter from some care givers at Damascus Hospital as they explained the strict procedure they abide by from the moment a patient arrives at the emergency entrance.
Lamb delivered the proposal made by a doctor who appeared a bit offended by the AI’s accusations to request from among scores of current or former patients their permission to provide AI with their phone numbers so they could discuss privately AI’s sweeping and unsupported allegations against the Syrian Medical community.
The American professor was invited to literally follow arriving emergency room patients as they were admitted and treated and until they were assigned a bed in the appropriate ward. The nurse told him that “the patient privacy rules are very strict in Syria and we can only ask medical and certainly not political questions.”
He added that he spoke for almost every Syrian medical person and what they insist that they are doctors and care givers with a variety of political views which they leave at home, stressing their commitment to their Hippocratic Oath which they take seriously.
Lamb concluded that “the Amnesty International falls significantly below an objective standard and fails to shoulder its burden of proof for the charges it levels at Syria’s medical community.”
“The fact that AI appears to have been somewhat lazy in its work and continues hyping its deeply flawed “investigation” is egregious.
AI also failed to meet the standard of investigative work that we will continue to support and endorse its human rights work expected from it,” he added.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:33 pm
jad said:
More violence, as predicted:
Bassam Alkadi on the highway near Talkalakh witnessing terrorist group using explosives and engaging in clashes with the army.
He is saying that they stuck there with dozens of cars, trucks and buses where they can’t turn back nor go forward..
بسام القاضي
”سلميو الثورة” يقطعون الطريق الدولي قرب تلكلخ ب”ورود” متفجرة.. اشتباكات عنيفة مع الجيش.
ونحن عالقون مع عشرات السيارات والشاحنات والبولمانات.. ولا نستطيع العودة الى الوراء ولا المضي قدما..
November 2nd, 2011, 2:34 pm
ghufran said:
It took less than 48 hours for somebody to set fire to this newspaper building:
http://www.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/6617E197-B89B-411A-A1C0-9345260269C5.htm?GoogleStatID=20
November 2nd, 2011, 2:39 pm
Areal said:
REALITY : French Doctors Delegation:
What We Saw on Ground Different from Media Reports
French doctors, visiting Damascus, took part on Sunday in a solidarity stand with Syria at al-Basel Heart Surgery Center in Damascus.
Members of the delegation stressed in statements to SANA that the aim of their visit is inspecting the reality of what is happening in Syria firsthand far from the reports broadcast by satellite channels.
The delegation pointed out to the importance of such visits in getting to know the reality of events, stressing that what they saw on their visits to different places is different from the reports broadcast by media and confirms that Syria and its people are fine.
The delegations stressed that life in Syria is normal and the markets are full of people, adding that they will relay what they saw during their visit to Syria to the French public opinion.
They highlighted the importance of friendship between the peoples of France and Syria, calling for holding more conferences, organizing visits and exchanging delegations between the two countries.
Members of the delegation said that their meetings with Syrian doctors uncovered the truth of the false image broadcast with the aim of harming Syria and its people.
For his part, head of the Doctors’ Union, Abdul-Qader Hassan, called for expanding the medical cooperation between Syria and France, noting that 6.000 Syrian doctors are working at French hospitals.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:40 pm
Areal said:
11. ghufran said:
It took less than 48 hours for somebody to set fire to this newspaper building:
http://www.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/6617E197-B89B-411A-A1C0-9345260269C5.htm?GoogleStatID=20
Since your link is useless , i think you refer to this story
Idolatry or freedom of expression
REALITY : the MB respect for freedom of expression in secularist France can be extrapolated to Syria
http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/11/02/france-firebombing-newspaper-muhammad.html?cmp=rss
A fire early Wednesday caused serious damages at the headquarters of a satiric French newspaper that “invited” the Prophet Muhammad as a guest editor this week.
Police cited a witness saying that someone was seen throwing two firebombs at the building.
The director of the newspaper, who uses the name Charb, said on BFM television that “the material damages are large” …
He said, however, that Charlie Hebdo would not stop publishing.
The fire, at about 1 a.m. local time, was quickly contained, but a large part of new offices on two levels were heavily damaged and equipment used by journalists to produce the paper were inoperable, a police official said.
Newspaper employees said they had received numerous threats as a result of the issue, subtitled “Sharia Hebdo,” in reference to Islamic law.
’100 lashes if you don’t die laughing’
The front-page of the weekly showed a cartoon-like man with a turban, white robe and beard smiling broadly and saying, in an accompanying bubble, “100 lashes if you don’t die laughing.”
Page 2, called “Sharia Madame,” is made up of a series of cartoons featuring women in burqas, the face-covering robes. And the paper’s tongue-in-cheek editorial, signed “Muhammad,” follows on page 3, centred on the victory last week of Tunisia’s Islamist Ennahda party in the nation’s first free election — and saying that the party’s real intention is imposing Islam not democracy.
Each page contains “a word from Muhammad” in the corner and spoofs the news by twisting it into the weekly’s current theme.
Leading French politicians, citing the right to freedom of expression, condemned the attack on the paper.
Islamic law generally opposes any depiction of the prophet, even favourable, for fear it could lead to idolatry.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:47 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
مماطلة بعثية و قرار رآسي واحد و متل قرار الا حزاب اللي اقر وتم الامضاء عليه بخمسة عشر ثانية بغير سوريا كاملا ن
مماطلة بس
Back to the Beach.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:47 pm
Tara said:
Bassam Alkadi reminds me with Toms and Jerry. Both characters can witness a massive explosion, be blown up, or fall from a very high ceiling then survive unscathed….
Amazing! Some people have extra-ordinary powers….
November 2nd, 2011, 2:49 pm
jad said:
#15
Are you wishing Bassam Alkadi ill or to be ‘blown up’ so you can get your happiness.
Amazing! Some people write extra-pathetic comments.
November 2nd, 2011, 2:55 pm
Atheist Syrian Salafist Against Dictatorships said:
Dear Tara,
Yes, I agree, we should نلحق الكذاب لورا الباب.
Even the “milder” internal opposition known as هيئة التنسيق الوطنية declared their doubts that the Assadist Mafiosi and Associates would actually implement the AL terms. Md. Abdul Majid Manjuneh, in an interview with Al-Jazeera Arabic said to the effect:”how can we trust Assad to stick to any agreement or honor any promise seeing as he repealed the State of Emergency law, yet to this day it is still being enforced to arbitrarily arrest people. The regime has lost all credibility and we believe it will not honor the agreement, just use it to gain time.”
Before starting their reporting in Syria all journalists should be given a special course by the LCCs on how to recognize a Shabbeeh!
November 2nd, 2011, 2:59 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: TARA
RE: “…Khaddam is an arch-enemy of the Syrian people just like Bashar…”
I know that, Tara. It doesn’t matter, because the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
When you’re having a revolution and getting ready to kill some people, you can’t be finicky and fastidious about who you hang with, capish?
November 2nd, 2011, 3:21 pm
Tara said:
ASAAD
How to recognize a Shabeeh is a good question for Revlon’s Analytical mind. How does a shabeeh look like? What does a shabeeh eat? etc Just thinking about possible headlines and answers makes me laugh.
#16
I do not get happiness from an ill fate of anybody.
November 2nd, 2011, 3:24 pm
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
Patheticing your comment
TARA @ 15
Your comment is pathetic, really pathetic. really really really (REALITY style) pathetic .Here is why
1. You did not call for surgical strikes on Syrians
2. You did not call 70% of the Syrian people traitors
3. You did not bad mouth the opposition and sully the reputation of everyone else.
4. You don’t think you are god
5. You are a woman, you don’t qualify to talk on behalf of Syrian Women like Mr. Alkadi. In fact, given god’s gift to humanity, Mr. Alkadi should be the only one talking (off courth after permithion from Athma’th offith), Thuth you don’t qualify to talk at all.
7. You were not hyperventilating in your comment.
Find # 6 on your own.
By now.
Smile to your daughter, will ya.
November 2nd, 2011, 3:27 pm
Majed97 said:
The location where the dialogue with the opposition will be held has not been determined yet…
الخطة العربية تنص على:
“1- وقف كافة أعمال العنف من أي مصدر كان حماية للمواطنين السوريين.
2-الإفراج عن المعتقلين بسبب الأحداث الراهنة.
3-إخلاء المدن والأحياء السكنية من جميع المظاهر المسلحة.
4- فتح المجال أمام منظمات جامعة الدول العربية المعنية ووسائل الإعلام العربية والدولية للتنقل بحرية في جميع أنحاء سوريا للاطلاع على حقيقة الأوضاع ورصد ما يدور فيها من أحداث”.
وتنص الخطة العربية كذلك وفقا لمشروع القرار، على انه “مع إحراز تقدم ملموس في تنفيذ الحكومة السورية لتعهداتها الواردة في البند السابق تباشر اللجنة الوزارية العربية القيام بإجراء الاتصالات والمشاورات اللازمة مع الحكومة ومختلف أطراف المعارضة السورية من اجل الإعداد لانعقاد مؤتمر حوار وطني”، ولم يحدد مشروع القرار مكان الحوار الذي كانت هناك خلافات حوله مع إصرار النظام السوري على أن يكون هذا الحوار في دمشق وتمسك المعارضة بانعقاده خارج سوريا.
http://syrianow.sy/index.php?d=2&id=39568
November 2nd, 2011, 3:29 pm
SANDRO LOEWE said:
Assad is more than a prophet and little less than God. Some alawites love Assad as a God. They faith is Assad. He is everything and they will sacrifice for him. Not every alawite, just the fucking ignorant and criminal ones.
Assad Syria has an eternal mission, to destroy Syria and return it to the middle ages while Israel is expanding day after day. God be wih him. I mean God is him.
November 2nd, 2011, 3:34 pm
Tara said:
Syrian Hamster
When you have time look up Pino’s paintings. My favorite living artist. He is a figurative artist. Your writings always always remind me with his paintings. Fine art…and I really mean it.
November 2nd, 2011, 3:38 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: TARA
RE: “…what does a shabeeh look like? What does a shabeeh eat? etc. etc…”
An excellent question, young lady.
Shabeeha are small, dumpy, greyish creatures who live in mountains and rocky ravines. They have the agility (and some say the brains) of mountain goats.
Shabeeha are loners, which explains their bad tempers and poor social skills. In fact, they only breed when a male shabeeha encounters a female shabeeha on an impassable mountain path. Much of the mating ritual involves kicking, pinching, biting and cursing.
As for food, the Shabeeha’s diet consists entirely of grubs. A Shabeeha cuisine has emerged over the centuries that is considered quite tasty, consisting of marinated grubs, spicy stewed grubs and even a grubs souffle. Several Shabeeha bistros have opened in the TriBeCa district of Manhattan to rave reviews.
November 2nd, 2011, 3:41 pm
Areal said:
To the Editor of the news round up
https://exchange.ou.edu/owa/redir.aspx?C=11e5f70fd2034ca2a19e2c9cdacc4610&URL=http%3a%2f%2fr20.rs6.net%2ftn.jsp%3fllr%3d8cautydab%26et%3d1108450263955%26s%3d186071%26e%3d001Gvw9Msv6iTqfFVWw5zyQQXARtbuGwE7worKUmg7QVcqzvEopmEWF5cxbXfMcBjpvqlO3sXTZoKyXzVuEkyomWUBYnaF92sf7xQ8_Zofc804lHurUUU4nj5OMNhB5kocKXTtj7_rRZRUk55WH5FRi1tjWqqHv1_q7zkeVkdWiLN25bmwGXdXrH74gFaCWHa8GXJCYxq_Q5Qecu5n7TRoNOUNvE6MZSDmyZw7ZV61po8VwpY-s75sWyFvo5Y2AVJkEQ_riUS0U46w%3d
This kind of link is quite difficult to access from outside ou.edu
November 2nd, 2011, 3:58 pm
jad said:
Talkalakh, Homs:
No electricity because the terrorists targeted the power stations and the clashes are intensifying, the highway is still closed:
FB:
* – انقطاع كهربائي شبه تام في المدينة بعد استهداف المحولات الكهربائية من قبل مسلحين
والاشتباكات تزداد عنف وقوة والاتستراد مازال مغلق والامن يتعامل لكن المسلحين عددهم كبير ومجهزين بالاسلحة المتنوعة
According to the ‘liar’ NOT, ‘tom&Jerry’ who have ‘extra-ordinary powers’ of staying alive and healthy, who happened to be there and stuck on the highway:
Bassam Alkadai, the gun fire is getting closer to the highway, cars turned off their lights, truck drivers are making tea :), kids are crying in some cars.
بسام القاضي اطلاق النار يقترب.. السيا ات اطفأت انوارها.. سائقوا الشاحنات صنعوا الشاي.. وأطفال يبكون في سيارات عائلية…
November 2nd, 2011, 4:16 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
It is too early to talk about Dialogue,Now the ball is in the hands of the regime.
It looks already the regime is violating the agreement, In Heffeh,close to Latakia,The security forces shot and killed protesters, This is evidence the regime is lying.
If the regime comply with the agreement,then Dialogue is reasonable and the opposition will go for dialogue.I am not worried about that.
The next step is massive peaceful demonstrations,this will cause the regime to fall,for sure.
Conclusion: The regeime is defeated,he gave in to the demands of the people,if he lies he will loose Russia veto,The regime for all practical reason he is gone.
November 2nd, 2011, 4:17 pm
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
Fine Art
Fine art indeed (Pino not me).
1. Loved the deep respect for his female subjects, every woman is a thinking woman and you can see that in his painting. (reminds me of Nizar’s poems about beautiful women)
2. Loved the colors.
3. Loved the frequently recurring mother daughter theme, especially one painting called “long day”
4. Loved the contrast between the fine, virtuoso skilled details in painting the human body part of the paintings, and the bold stroke defining the surroundings. Focus is good, and it exquisitly done in his work.
5. Altought I am a fan of more modern style art, I liked this artist’s work very very much.
I need more time, and I need to see a real work not just photos online to fully appreciate this fin artist. I will be looking for nearby collections available for public vieweing in my area or on my next trip to Milan. (I will ride the next ship, all rodents do that).
November 2nd, 2011, 4:20 pm
SANDRO LOEWE said:
Our most warm welcome to the Assad Peace Initiative.
Finally Assad supporters will feel free to demostrate their opinions without being attacked by terrorists. No longer they will tortured, kidnapped, detained without judgement, killed by snipers.
Also terrosist anti-syrian anti-Assad anti-civilization thugs will be free to demonstrate in Hama, Homs, Damascus, Safita, Deir Ezor, Dara, etc. without feeling in need of killing security services who protect civil population.
So this friday there will be a freedom party and no death will be registered. Sure.
November 2nd, 2011, 4:31 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
Syria and Arab League say 2 Nov 2011 they’ve created a sort of agreement but the details are not given. I don’t see anything about it at the website of the Arab League.
According to SANA one detail is that Syria’s government is renewing its offer to Syria’s various opposition cranks to give the cranks face-to-face information sessions about what Syria’s program of reforms is. That’s something the government’s had on offer all along, of course. It doesn’t really matter whether the opposition now opts to accept the renewed offer or not. The regime has already decided what reforms it’s going to do and most the reforms are already done. The regime has no practical need for the oppositions’ endorsements (though all endorsements’d be welcome, of course). The oppositions’ endorsements wouldn’t stop the armed dissidents in Homs; only force of arms can stop that.
It looks to me that this Arab League thing, bearing in mind the lack of details about what it is, is just going to boil down to a challenge to the various Syrian oppositions to adopt a civilized political strategy and to quit hankering for a Libya-like obscenity.
The news media this evening are saying “The Syrian government has approved an Arab plan for dialogue with the opposition”. Repeating myself, that’s a crock of shit. The Syrian government has been asking opposition dialog all along.
The news media this evening are also saying: “Syria accepted an Arab League proposal calling for it to withdraw armored vehicles from the streets and stop violence against protesters.” That’s a crock of shit. No group of people has a right to attack the authority of the State or foment armed insurrection. A serious decision has been made to oppose these people by all means. Now and forever.
United Press International (UPI.com) says: “The Arab League announced in Cairo Wednesday Syria agreed to end its deadly crackdown on anti-government forces.” That’s a crock of shit. Syria will never end its deadly crackdown on armed dissidents. Surely, the Arab League has no document to the contrary signed by Syria.
Can you show me the text of the supposed agreement?!
***********
Footnote: According to SANA, it was agreed with the Arab League that Syria will give Arabic news reporters greater access on the ground in Syria. I sincerely hope exceptions will be made for Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya — I don’t want those two dastardly culprits back in Syria under any circumstances. They’ve been guilty of criminal incitement and everybody knows it. They should be banned for a decade. http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/11/02/379589.htm
November 2nd, 2011, 4:33 pm
Tara said:
Syrian Hamster
I have not thought of him before as Nizar’s equivalent but you are absolutely right. Nizar’s poem materializing in paintings! My favorite mother-child one is “maternal instincts”. The colors and the contrast of the real work is breath-taking.
Nice small conversation..Back to the ugly reality.
November 2nd, 2011, 4:46 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
The following is copied from #688 in the previous thread. #677 in previous thread quotes the spokesman of the committee tasked with revising the whole Constitution, Sam Della, saying what’s going to happen to Article 8 “is the most controversial item… and it is axiomatic that it would be reviewed or omitted.”
There’s no one in pro-regime quarters who’s advocating retention of Article 8. It is not controversial at all. Bashar said in his nationally televised speech on 20 June 2011:
They’ve since decided to re-do the whole Constitution, and not just replace Article 8. They are moving slower than they can move. They are too slow. Bashar also said on 20 June 2011:
And now they’re even later, assuming the new Constitution doesn’t arrive until February.
November 2nd, 2011, 4:48 pm
Areal said:
Unreported World this time from Syria – Channel 4 documentary film – 21.10.2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VREGqHFA1mg
the link given by the editor in his round up
REALITY
It is amazing that journalist ( not arabic speaking ) can still be abused by the fake defectors wearing stolen uniforms from the warehouse in Hama and sport shoes ( look @ 18:47 ) because they did not have military shoes in the warehouse stock.
Obviously , they don’t read Syria Comment because taking their flight.
At the end @ 23:21 , the size of the demonstration is under 100 with a few women at the back wearing the opposition typical unicolor dress.
November 2nd, 2011, 5:22 pm
SANDRO LOEWE said:
According to many syrians we do not need more freedom nor democracy (they say it does not exist). We need bread to eat and money to pay for our expenses. Some say we need mosques to pray and that is enough. This is what the regime created and maybe this is the dream of any power to have their people fighting each other for the pennies they need to survive. Many people in syrian current life (except the promoted shamis at Malki or Abu Rumaneh with their narguileh and brand new cars) repeats the same mantra:
* The regime wants people to worry about daily needs so they have no time to think about freedom.
* They corrupted regime, by forbiding everything, is forcing you to violate stupid rules and letting you feel that if you are not punished by them you should be thankful and kiss their feet.
Thanks to assadists mistakes and excesses this sick rules are coming to an end.
Negative Votes: 11
November 2nd, 2011, 5:28 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
I remember the many Fridays of early summer this year when the biggest anti-regime demonstrations in Syria were in Homs city (plus Asi Square in Hama), and the demonstrations in the several different Homs city neighborhoods were all overwhelmingly peaceful demonstrations, week after week. Contrast that with last Friday in Homs:
There are practically no Friday demonstrations in Homs city nowadays at all, not even smaller ones. It was the violence of armed dissidents in Homs that completely destroyed the turnout for civil demonstrations in Homs city.
November 2nd, 2011, 5:47 pm
jad said:
Horrible days in Homs, today 35 human killed for NO REASON:
بحببببك يا حمص
بحبببببك يا حمص | 2-11-2011
شهدت مدينة حمص اليوم أحداثا دامية و مؤسفة عنوانها الابرز (( حرب الاهلية ))
فبعد ليلة عاشتها المدينة وهي في حالة ذهول مما جرى لركاب حافلة كانت متجهة الى جب عباس و التي راح ضحيتها 11 شهيدا من عدة قرى متجاورة .
استيقظت حمص اليوم لتشيع شهداء مجزرة الامس و في الوقت الذي كانت فيه مواكب التشييع تشق طريقها في شوارع المدينة متجهة نحو القرى .. قامت مجموعة مسلحة باختطاف ركاب بينهم نساء كانوا يستقلون سرفيسين على خط الكورنيش الشرقي في حي النازحين بالقرب من مسجد عمر بن عبد العزيز و اقتيادهم الى جهة مجهولة .
فجاءت ردات الفعل من خلال قيام بعض الشبان من أحياء اخرى بالنزول الى الشارع و قطع الطرق . وبعد ساعات على الاختطاف وردت الى المشفى الاهلي بحمص جثث بعض المختطفين حيث كانت الجثث لأربع نساء و ثلاث رجال .
مما سبب في نزول الناس الى الشوارع في عدة احياء و القيام بالرد بالمثل و بهذا دخلت حمص مرحلة مايشبه بدايات حرب أهلية .
حيث القتل في الشارع في كل الاحياء .. و الجثث التي وصلت الى مشافي حمص من كافة المناطق تجاوز عددها الـ 35 جثة حتى هذه اللحظة .
هذا عدا عن حرق و تكسير بعض السيارات و الاملاك الخاصة و طبعا الاستهداف طائفي .
لأول مرة نكتب خبرا بهذه الصياغة و لكن في ظل تعتيم اعلامي تتعمده جهات ( معنية ) آثرنا على انفسنا ان ننقل الحقيقة كما هي ولو ان الحقيقة مرة و جارحة .. و لكنها الحقيقة .
اخوتنا من ابناء المحافظات الاخرى .. لايمكننا ان نقول لكم ( حطوا حالكم محلنا ) لانكم فعليا لستم ( محلنا ) .
November 2nd, 2011, 5:51 pm
jad said:
Here you go:
Annahda (Tunisian) party announce that Alghanoush words about Syria are his ‘Personal’ views not an ‘Official’ one, the party support the Syrian uprising but when it comes to the diplomatic matters the new government is the one responsible of any decision.
حزب النهضة: تصريحات الغنوشي بشأن طرد السفير السوري موقف شخصي
02/11/2011 15:54
قال حزب النهضة التونسي يوم الأربعاء إن التصريحات المنسوبة لرئيسه راشد الغنوشي بشأن “غلق السفارة السورية وطرد السفير من تونس” تعبر عن موقف شخصي وليس رسميا.
وأكد عضو المكتب التنفيذي لحزب النهضة سمير ديليو في مقابلة مع “راديو سوا” أن “موقف حزب النهضة كان موقفا داعما للثورة السورية، لكننا ننأى بأنفسنا عن التدخل في الأمور المتعلقة بالدبلوماسية والسياسة الخارجية لعدم تقييد أيدي الحكومة المقبلة التي نريد لها الحرية في اتخاذ القرارات التي تراها مناسبة دون أي تدخل”.
وأضاف ديليو أن الموقف من التطورات الجارية في سوريا “يتعلق بالحكومة المقبلة فور تشكيلها” مؤكدا أنه “لا صحة لما قيل حول نية الحكومة تنفيذ هذه الأمور”.
وتساءل ديليو قائلا “كيف لحكومة لم تتشكل بعد أن تقوم باتخاذ قرارات” مشيرا إلى أن الحكومة “مازالت في طور المشاورات ولم تتشكل حتى الآن”.
يأتي هذا بعد أن نقل موقع “راديو سوا” عن وسائل إعلام أخرى أمس الثلاثاء تصريحات للغنوشي أكد فيها أن “تونس تؤيد المجلس الوطني السوري باعتباره ممثلا شرعيا للشعب السوري”، كما أعلن قراره “غلق السفارة وطرد السفير السوري من تونس”.
يذكر أن حزب النهضة ذا التوجهات الإسلامية كان قد فاز بتسعين مقعدا من أصل 217 مقعدا في الانتخابات الأخيرة التي جرت في تونس لتشكيل مجلس تأسيسي لصياغة الدستور.
وتجري الأحزاب التونسية، بما في ذلك حزب النهضة، مشاورات حالية لإعداد خارطة طريق للفترة المقبلة، قبل أيام على دعوة الرئيس التونسي المؤقت فؤاد المبزع المجلس التأسيسي المنتخب إلى الاجتماع للبدء بمباشرة مهامه.
ويتولى المجلس التأسيسي اختيار رئيسه ونائبيه والاتفاق على نظامه الداخلي ونظام مؤقت لإدارة الدولة.
كما يعين رئيسا مؤقتا جديدا خلفا للمبزع الذي كان قد أعلن انه سينسحب من العمل السياسي حال تسليم الرئاسة. وبعدها، يكلف الرئيس المؤقت الجديد من تتفق عليه الغالبية في المجلس بتشكيل حكومة جديدة للمرحلة الانتقالية الثانية منذ الإطاحة بنظام بن علي.
November 2nd, 2011, 6:19 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
@ JAD. Keep up the good work. But I request that you live up to your own words back at #4 above, “Please link the sources”.
November 2nd, 2011, 6:39 pm
jad said:
Hi YMG,
You are right, the issue is that the site I found this piece of news on is one of those creepy ‘mfshkal’ sites 😉 so I didn’t know what to do since I can’t find the origin of it..Sorry!
http://www.sa-leb.com/vb/showthread.php?p=498395#post498395
November 2nd, 2011, 6:49 pm
jad said:
YMG
Check out these clips, it says that it was taken somewhere in Homs by a security camera:
-A taxi stopped in the street and start firing, so people run away
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ارهابيو حمص يطلقون النار على المارة من سيارة تكسي
http://youtu.be/JVR_Nx-lsL8
-However, couple weeks ago, I watched this clip of the exact same area being hit by apparently an RPG
اطلاق لقذيفة ار بي جي ارهابيي حمص
http://youtu.be/17r8Uvstauc
The strange thing is that the terrorists (whoever they are) keep targeting the same neighbourhood isn’t it weird?
———————
Here is the news on another ‘better’ designed site:
حزب النهضة: تصريحات الغنوشي بشأن طرد السفير السوري موقف شخصي
الخبر برس : الإخبارية اللبنانية
http://www.alkhabarpress.com/SiteNews/details.php?docId=20876
November 2nd, 2011, 7:05 pm
Ghufran said:
الحوار الثوري
http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=139516
November 2nd, 2011, 7:10 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
“I am the Sultan Abdul Aziz Bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud al-Faisal and I conceded and acknowledged a thousand times to Sir Percy Cox, delegate of Great Britain, that I have no objection to giving Palestine to the poor Jews or even to non-Jews, and I will never ever violate their [the UK] orders,” read the note signed by King Abdul Aziz. Of course the note start with Bism Allah AlRahman Alrahim.
What a wise Moslem Sultan (Khadem Alharamin), we share his Islamic vision for Palestine as the eternal Jewish homeland as well, not only that, in the Name of Allah Alrhman al Rahim we promise the Zionists, or whoever noble like them, to give all of Arabia and its resources to the Noble Jews or whoever the Rockefellers-Rothschild’s wanted to. Allah is great, his will let be done, his servant I will be so my 72 twenty something blond virgins will wait for me in Jinnah with unlimited booze barrels, which will be needed for sure. Will keep my promise to deliver, if Allah and his last “profit” Mohammad keep theirs.
November 2nd, 2011, 7:22 pm
jna said:
Associated Press
JERUSALEM November 2, 2011 (AP)
An Israeli official said Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to persuade his Cabinet to authorize a military strike against Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons program — a discussion that comes as Israel successfully tests a missile believed capable of carrying a nuclear warhead to Iran.
It remained unclear whether Israel was genuinely poised to strike or if it was saber-rattling to prod the international community into taking a tougher line on Iran. Israeli leaders have long hinted at a military option, but they always seemed mindful of the practical difficulties, the likelihood of a furious counterstrike and the risk of regional mayhem
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/israel-test-fires-missile-hit-iran-14865603
November 2nd, 2011, 7:41 pm
Tara said:
Syria’s Moment of Truth at the Arab League
Syria, The Arab Spring and Middle East Unrest, Middle East, International Organizations, International Relations
Salman Shaikh, Director, Brookings Doha Center
The Brookings Institution
http://www.brookings.edu/opinions/2011/1102_syria_shaikh.aspx
As Arab League Foreign Minister’s meet today, the organization has some decisions to make concerning the situation in Syria. The League, on October 17, finally demanded an end to the violent crackdown of the Assad regime against largely peaceful protestors and the start of a national dialogue between the regime and opposition to be held under its auspices. A special ministerial committee led by Qatar has subsequently been pushing a four point plan to Assad that demands the withdrawal of security forces from the streets, the immediate release of prisoners held since February, permits the Arab and international media to bear witness to what is going on in the country and to start a dialogue with the opposition.
The Assad regime’s response has been predictable: sow confusion, attempt to buy time and if that does not work, change the subject. Facing a 24 hour deadline to respond, the regime announced on Syrian State TV that it had reached agreement with the League and was waiting for a final approval from Cairo. Further rumours were circulated by the Algerian Foreign Ministry to whom its counterparts had communicated the “Syrian response.” In fact, there has been no official Syrian response as the Arab League has confirmed no agreement. Instead, Assad has signaled that he is open to dialogue with the opposition and will in the near future release prisoners. Confusion still reigns—because Assad wants it to—on whether he is agreeing to the proposed dialogue in Cairo and whether he will accept a new two-week deadline to get it started. He has also made his own demands, namely to demand that the opposition drop its weapons, that Arab countries stop funding these weapons and also end their media campaign against Syria.
These tactics should not work—no, not this time. It is time for the Arab League to hold the Assad regime to its four central demands. In particular, if a dialogue with the opposition is possible at this stage, it should be held outside Syria where the regime can not intimidate genuine opposition figures. Furthermore, for the dialogue to be credible, it is likely that it would need to discuss the transition to a democratic post-Assad future in Syria.
In the event that Assad will not agree to the four demands, as is likely, or not even respond, the Arab League should move to suspend Syria’s membership. Within the League itself, as the past few months of feeble action show, suspension will not be easy. In particular, autocracies in Algeria and Yemen and predictably, the government in Lebanon are resisting such a move. Iraq is also hesitant given the influence of Iran on its politics.
However, Arab leaders have to understand that there is an overwhelming majority of their publics—some 90%—who are siding with the protestors in Syria as a recent poll by the Arab American Institute confirms. The daily carnage in towns throughout Syria captured on mobile phone footage, which appears within hours on Arabs satellite channels has turned them against the regime.
More than 100 protestors have been killed since the League made its demands to add to the more than 3,100 killed since the start of the uprising in February. If the Arab League does not back up its own demands and once again gives Assad the time to evade his responsibilities, it will not only be the Syrian regime which will be blamed for the deaths of potentially thousands more people in Syria. For the sake of its credibility, it is time for the Arab League to act.
November 2nd, 2011, 7:51 pm
Ghufran said:
So,how is removing armed forces from places like Homs will help that troubled spot?
Is the AL willing to send delegates to verify the presence of armed terrorists inside Syria?
What is the AL supposed to do if people die without a proof of who and how? Are they going to automatically blame the regime?
Overall,I was supportive of a deal and I still am but so many details need to be worked out and a lot of reconciliatory steps have to be taken by the regime to calm people down.
The largest obstacle will be containing armed gangs who only want to see blood and violent elements in the security forces who are not born to compromise.
November 2nd, 2011, 8:14 pm
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
Holly Friday
There are no demonstrations on Friday.
Good, people need some rest after demonstrating and being murdered by betho’s mafia thugs on Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, ands Thursday.
وقد رشحت المعلومات بان اللجنة الوزارية رضخت لشروط الوفد السوري
What a bombastic asinine language from someone whose long neck is being spared the noose by the ministerial committee. These are the inheritors of those who celebrated the victory on June 6, 1967because the Baath regime survived Israel’s attack and for the tiny price of Jolan. Very impressive. Keep the good work up and more smilies please.
November 2nd, 2011, 8:42 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Ghufran
The demonstrations are peaceful,they carry no weapons, the defectors from the army have weapons,do not accuse the demonstrators of violent acts, it is the Shabbiha who are the killers,and the security forces who are killing, the demonstrators never have weapons,thugs are the Shabbiha and the security forces.
those must stop shooting,the snipers from the top of the building belong to the shabbiha.
It is the responsibility of the regime to pull those shabbiha and security forces away.
November 2nd, 2011, 8:43 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
I can relax a little easier with this one under by belt:
November 2nd, 2011, 8:44 pm
Ghufran said:
Majed,
Whenever there is a large group of angry people demonstrating,armed and violent thugs show up and people get killed. I never compared peaceful demonstrators to armed gangs,my main concern is the loss of lives. The regime is under intense political pressure,and the opposition must be engaged in a political struggle to win more support from the average Syrian. Violence hurt the regime and it will do the same to the opposition.
November 2nd, 2011, 8:57 pm
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
SANA Translated
Basically he said, let us hope you are as smart as we hope you are and that you don’t screw this up like every other time.
November 2nd, 2011, 8:59 pm
Ghufran said:
عذر اقبح من ذنب
الجزائر ـ اتهم المدير العام الجديد لقناة الجزيرة القطرية، مصطفى سواق، جهات لم يحددها بتعمد تضليل القناة بشأن أخبار الثورات العربية ومدها بمعلومات خاطئة لضرب مصداقيتها و”حتى يقال بأن الجزيرة أخطأت”.
وقال سواق في حديث الى صحيفة “الخبر” الجزائرية نشر الأربعاء “إن الانتقادات بأغلبها لا علاقة لها بالمهنية، لأننا لم نكذب على أحد ولم نقدم خبرا خاطئا إلا في حالات نادرة”.
Watch Qatar
مرحلة تبويس الشوارب قادمه
November 2nd, 2011, 9:03 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Ghufran said
Whenever there is a large group of angry people demonstrating,armed and violent thugs show up and people get killed
Ghufran what you said is wrong,those armed are the shabbiha.
When pro regime demonstrate there is no armed people, and no shooting , as large as those demonstrators are,
What you say is wrong.
On another subject I think the withdrawal of american troops from Iraq, signal a plan against Iran.
November 2nd, 2011, 9:13 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
@ JAD #40: The first video you linked to has been removed at youtube. The second video could’ve been created wholly with video special effects, by you or me using a video editor that has a parameterizable “Explosion” special effect.
If the report at AlKhabarPress about Ghannouchi is true, then Ghannouchi is out on a limb. Almost all rest of the non-Syrian Arabs are converging on supporting the reforms that are being introduced by the regime. They are acknowledging that the Syrian Popular Will is to support the regime’s reforms. I have records of the following Arab countries saying they support the program of reforms that’s coming to Syria under the auspices of the Assad regime specifically: Egypt, Algeria, Iraq, Sudan, Oman, UAE, Lebanon, and Syria. I have a second-hand report that Yemen says the same. I have more tepid or ambiguous statements from Jordan and Bahrain, but still these are very far from Ghannouchi’s statement.
November 2nd, 2011, 9:19 pm
bronco said:
#45. Ghufran
The devil is in the details.
November 2nd, 2011, 9:23 pm
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
So Aljazeera can not accuse unknown sources of misinformation while they are not on the ground to verify and will not be allowed in after the ministerial committee was “humiliated” by the Syrian’s demands, but Betho and his trumpets can accuse the entire universe of conspiracy. Even today, his deputy minister of foreign affairs was badmouthing Jordan and other Arabs (he didn’t name).
I feel sad for those who spend so much time rationalizing. If they just come out and say we love betho and we want him to stay FOR EVER, you will make everyone’s life easier. It is just too hard to watch the mental anguish and the futile attempts to sanitize the regime’s crimes so that one can look like defending life while in fact hooting for the murderer regime.
By quoting SANA and similar regime trumpets, one simply forfeits the right to pretend that they are against the regime’s “bad practices” or “bad apples” and with that the right to be taken seriously. It is not a national agency, it is a regime agency. Same as Duhnya. Those who do so are no better than the stupid fool who stood in the middle of the parliament and invited the other fool to become the president of the world. I am just waiting to see how this whole thing will be spun as a victory for Syrian diplomacy. I guess it already started.
November 2nd, 2011, 9:31 pm
zoo said:
Syria fully accepts Arab peace plan: League official
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
CAIRO – Agence France-Presse
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=syria-fully-accepts-arab-peace-plan-league-official-2011-11-02
Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal attends on November 2, 2011 a ministerial meeting at the Arab League’s Cairo headquarters on the situation in Syria, during which Damascus fully accepted a plan to end nearly eight months of bloodshed, according to a League official. AFP photo
Syria on Wednesday fully accepted an Arab League plan to end nearly eight months of bloodshed, during a ministerial meeting at the organisation’s Cairo headquarters, a League official said.
“The Syrian delegation accepted the Arab League plan without reservations and in its entirety,” the official said.
The Arab roadmap calls for an immediate halt to the bloodletting in Syria, the removal of tanks from the streets, and the start of a dialogue between the Damascus regime and its opponents.
The plan was submitted Sunday to Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem at a meeting in Doha and a reply had been initially due on Monday, but Syria asked for a delay to allow its leadership to mull the proposals.
Hours before the meeting in Cairo, Syria’s largest opposition group urged the pan-Arab body to freeze the country’s membership in the organisation.
November 2nd, 2011, 9:36 pm
bronco said:
Ankara is mistaken on the topic of Assad
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=ankara-is-mistaken-on-the-topic-of-assad-2011-11-02
…
Assad turns out to be a hard nut to crack
Ankara’s expectation was that the Syrian opposition would take to the streets en masse and that the Assad regime would be toppled in a short time.
But, what was expected did not happen.
Either Ankara miscalculated together with Washington or Assad turned out to be a hard nut to crack. More precisely, the international conjuncture came to Assad’s rescue.
Including Turkey, the Western world never considered military intervention in Syria. It was already known that it would have been very dangerous. More importantly, what concerned the West the most and prevented it from increasing pressure was the uncertainty of post Assad.
Add to this the Iranian support for Assad never ceased and that China and Russia’s backed Syria at the U.N. Security Council, then the situation becomes clear.
Today, Assad seems to be in control of the situation in his country. He managed to interlock his supporters. Even Ankara, who said Assad “would fall in weeks,” is now referring to a few years of resistance.
In short, calculations seem to have gone wrong.
While Washington is tackling with its own problems, Turkey was stuck with the task of toppling the power in Syria.
Why? Is it worth it to antagonize such a close neighbor to us by resuscitating old animosities at a time when we are clearing the place of the PKK?
Is there need to go this far?
Beyond Turkey’s reaction to Assad lies the concern of a possible Sunni-Alevi clash. From the beginning, Ankara feared a mass Sunni migration of hundreds of thousands to Turkey if things got worse. But today’s picture does not pose any threat.
Therefore, because of this, I still have not understood the benefit or logic of making Syria our enemy by insisting on this policy in the long run.
November 2nd, 2011, 9:43 pm
bronco said:
Turkey a model for Arabs?
“Some 57 percent of respondents in Turkey said corruption had increased in Turkey in the past three years and close to 60 percent said either they or someone living in their household had paid some type of bribe in the past year.”
Turkey receives a bad mark on bribe paying
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=turkey-recives-a-bad-mark-on-bribe-paying-2011-11-02
November 2nd, 2011, 9:50 pm
Ghufran said:
تركيا و أنصارها ليسوا راضيين عن مبادرة الجامعه و لا يريدون للمجلس الوطني ان يفاوض السلطه
اغلب قراء الصحف العربيه يعتقدون ان المبادره هي طوق نجاة للنظام
دعت اعلامية سورّية المعارضين والناشطين الى الاعداد لانقلاب على المجلس الوطني السوري المشكل في اسطنبول قبل شهر.
وقالت الاعلامية السورية ميساء آق بيق في تصريحات خاصة لـ”ايلاف” “لقد انتظرنا وقتا كافيا كي نرى أفعالا تخدم الثورة كما كان ينبغي على المجلس الوطني السوري القيام به ولم نجد الا تصريحات متناقضة من قبل أعضاء المجلس، ولم نر أجندة واضحة ـو رؤية تتوافق مع نبض الثورة”.
واعتبرت أن “المجلس شغل نفسه بتوفيق جميع اطياف الشعب وكلنا نعلم انه حتى في اكثر الدول تقدما لا يتوافق جميع اطياف الشعب على سياسة واحدة، والثورة عندما قامت على الارض لم يهمها من من الأطياف شارك فيها لانها ثورة شعب على الظلم، ولو ان الثوار انتظروا حتى ينضم لهم جميع الأطياف لماتت الثورة في مهدها. أنا لا اسمي هذا انقلابا فانت معني بتصحيح اخطاء ابنك ولست معنيا بتصحيح اخطاء ابن الجيران، والمجلس ابن الثورة وعليه تصحيح أخطائه”.
Majed,I may be wrong but I do not see how can an armed rebellion help the average Syrian unless the goal is to increase the bloodshed and invite a foreign intervention which will increase the death toll by ten folds or more.
Iran is nervous because the withdrawal from Iraq may be a step to focus on the Iranian regime,but any war on Iran will not be limited to Iran and it may actually weaken anti government movements in the Arab world and destabilize the Gulf
November 2nd, 2011, 9:55 pm
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
Soft nuts don’t crack either. They just don’t have substance.
November 2nd, 2011, 9:56 pm
Ghufran said:
بصمات بوتين القيصر القادم
موسكو..
أعلنت موسكو، أمس، أنها تنفذ عقداً لتزويد سوريا بصواريخ روسية متطورة مضادة للسفن، مشيرة إلى أن التعاون العسكري التقني بين البلدين يتواصل بشكل طبيعي.
وأعلنت روسيا مراراً أنها ستفي بعقد يعود لعام 2007 يقضي بتسليم أنظمة صاروخية مضادة للسفن (باستيون)، بالإضافة إلى صواريخ “ياخونت” إلى سوريا رغم محاولات إسرائيل والولايات المتحدة عرقلة الصفقة.
ونقلت وكالة “نوفوستي” عن رئيس الهيئة الحكومية للتعاون العسكري التقني ميخائيل ديمترييف قوله إن “هذا العقد قيد التنفيذ”. وأشار إلى أن التعاون العسكري التقني بين روسيا وسوريا يتواصل بصورة طبيعية، موضحاً أن تنفيذ هذا العقد تتابعه شركة “روس أوبورون أكسبورت” التي تدير غالبية الصادرات الروسية من الأسلحة.
يشار الى أن مهمة صواريخ “ياخونت” تدمير السفن الحربية، أما منظومة “باستيون” فخصصت لخفر السواحل. ويحمل الصاروخ 200 كيلوغرام من المتفجرات، وهو قادر على إصابة هدف يبعد 300 كيلومتر، ويستطيع التحليق على ارتفاع خمسة أمتار فقط، ما يجعل من المتعذر على الرادار اكتشافه.
November 2nd, 2011, 10:04 pm
Ghufran said:
حاليا يخسر اي مواطن ٥ ليرات عن كل دولار يرسله للبنوك الخاصه بسبب الفارق بين السعر الرسمي و سعر السوق
Central Bank Holds Auction as Foreign Reserves Position Remains Unclear
31-10-2011
Syria’s Central Bank held on Thursday its first auction of US dollars and sold the American currency at a rate of SYP 51.30 or some 4 percent lower the market rate it sets.
November 2nd, 2011, 10:09 pm
jad said:
YMG
Here is a new link for the first clip
http://youtu.be/HBSHg3pcGek
I’m not saying that they are false, but I find it very interesting that the same street was attacked twice in less than 3 weeks
November 2nd, 2011, 10:40 pm
Norman said:
The deal that Syria agreed on with the AL is the best face saving measure that the West, the Arab League, the Syrian government and if they are smart, the opposition agreeing to the plan will legitimize the opposition and lead Syria out of the dark and toward reform ,
The question is, will the opposition seek peace or war?.
November 2nd, 2011, 11:07 pm
Ghufran said:
انسحاب الجيش المحتمل من حمص لا يجوز ان يتم بدون ضمانات و اجراءات لحماية ارواح الناس
القتل و الخطف في حمص معزوفه دمويه يوميه و الكلام القديم عن ان كل اعمال القتل يقوم بها الشبيحه و النظام صار مملا و لا يشتريه اي حمصي اليوم
حماية حمص اهم من إرضاء امراء الماعز
المطلوب ازالة كل المظاهر المسلحه و التوقف عن اجراءات البطش و التعسف و ليس المطلوب إعطاء كارت بلانش للمجرمين أيا كانوا كي يعيثوا فسادا في المدينه
تحتاج المدينه لوقت طويل كي تستعيد روحها و كي يشعر اهلها بالامان
November 2nd, 2011, 11:14 pm
Norman said:
Ghufran,
Do you think that the Syrian government is going to show the world what is going to happen in Homs which is going to attract the opposing gunmen, then attack and clear the city once and for all.
November 2nd, 2011, 11:21 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
If Shabbiha and security forces are eliminated,there will be no danger on the people of Homs, All Violence are committed by the Shabbiha,except when the army attack, the defectors try to help.
If this is boring to you,it is because it is fact, There is no armed demonstrators,any future violence will be the regime shabbiha violence,and this is still going on by the regime,who is lying and the regime supporters are lying too, Al haj was on AlArabyieh today he was absurd and talking like someone who has no education ,
The regime will be exposed soon,he will try to blame the violence that the regime is planing,blame it on the demonstrators, he will fail,
The supporters of the regime are trying ahead of this friday to blame the demonstrators because they are not honest,the AL has given the regime long long time,it is about time to end this game by the rwegime.
November 2nd, 2011, 11:30 pm
jad said:
Syria. The Pretext to Wage a “Just War”: How “Humanitarian Organizations” Provide a “Human Face” to War
by Felicity Arbuthnot
“Absolutism, tempered by assassination.” (Ernst Munster, 1766-1839.)
Oh well, time to move on folks, Nothing to see here. Now there is an oil man, who spent many years in the United States as “interim Prime Minister”, shoed in, in Libya (i) it’s time to go a-toppling again.
Don’t mention the dead, distraught, destroyed, the mass graves and mass murders, by NATO and their ethnic cleansers at ground level, near certainly tutored by their Special Services. There’s oil to pump, rebuilding contracts to be divvied out, a bit of looting – and near certainly no accounting for all Libya’s frozen assets, being minimally returned in dribs and drabs. Remember Iraq’s missing billions? Another day, another precedent, another grand theft?
And that well worn propaganda hand book, battered, dog eared, but trusty, is back.
It has, in fact, seemingly, been leafed back to over twenty years ago, to August 1990, to be exact. Then, Kuwaiti babies had been torn from their incubators, thrown to the hospital floor and left to die, by Iraqi soldiers, said a “nurse” claiming to work in Kuwait – backed by Amnesty International.(ii, iii) It was entirely untrue, but it was arguably the tipping point, justification for the coming 42 day bombardment and the first ruination of Iraq, which was “Operation Desert Storm.”
In August this year, it was alleged, babies in Syria were left to die in their incubators, after President Bashar al Assad had the electricity turned off. Pictures showed pathetic little souls, inexplicably blood smeared – and huddled.
However, some meticulous digging by Ali Abunima (iv) throws up many questions. Certainly the doctored picture was earlier in an Egyptian publication, showing overcrowded conditions in the country’s paediatric units – the babies in that one,were pink and healthy, nevertheless.
As the fog of disinformation again obscures much, it is worth remembering that President Assad trained as a doctor, worked as one for some years, then did further post-graduate training, qualifying as an opthamologist at London’s prestigious St Mary’s Teaching Hospital group. He had planned medicine as a career, which was cut short when his brother, designated his father’s heir, was killed.
Accusations of targeting babies towards a man who had devoted years to studying medicine, should surely at least be questioned. Further, in an atmosphere of unrest, it would hardly win over the dissenters.
On 25th October, Amnesty produced a thirty six page Report(v) largely taken from media outlets, and non-attributed videos, “documenting” gruesome abuses in Syria’s hospitals, including a variation on babies ripped from incubators, “ … at least one unconscious patient having his ventilator removed …” before being taken away, an unnamed “health worker” had said.
Four days after the Report was published Amnesty had organized a demonstration in London: “No more Blood – No more Fear”, which rallied outside the Syrian Embassy.
Chris Doyle, Director of the Council for Arab British Understanding told demonstrators that: “Even donkeys have become targets of the Syrian army” and that water had been cut off because the government claimed it had been polluted by halucigens. The cynic might think that had all the validity of claims Colonel Quaddafi gave Viagra to his troops – and Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
However, Doyle shone one light, demanding that “human rights organizations” be allowed in to the country. If they have relied on second hand sources for their Report, has it any more validity than Kuwait’s incubator babies?
Franklin Lamb thinks not and has produced a detailed piece as to why, from seemingly unrestricted, recent, first hand experience in Syrian hospitals.(vi.) He also has telephone numbers of medical practitioners wishing to invite Amnesty researchers to see for themselves.
Syria, it seems, is in the regime change frame. Today, it has been revealed by a; ‘’a senior diplomat … and a former UN investigator”, who, of course, “both spoke on condition of anonymity”, that Syria has a previously unknown nuclear power plant. (vii.)
“Suspicions” are that Syria worked with Abdul Qadeer Khan, “father of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, to acquire nuclear weapons technology.”
The buildings “closely” resemble those of Libya’s when they were trying to build nuclear weapons. However, before you head for the fall out shelter or reach for a 2,000 lb., bunker buster:
“The complex, in the city of Hasakah, now appears to be a cotton-spinning plant, and investigators have found no sign it was ever used for nuclear production.”
Israel, of course, bombed a “suspected” nuclear plant in 2007, legality, as ever, redundant.
Syria is also currently being accused of laying mines along the Lebanese border, to prevent insurgents, crossing it. Perhaps it is, who knows? If so, a way to discourage, might be to put out a hand of friendship. If threatened sufficiently most might resort to protective measures.
It is surely coincidence that the unrest and the focus on Syria began shortly after the arrival of the first US Ambassador to the country since 2005.
Ambassador Robert Ford, arrived in Damascus on 16th January this year. By 31st January, there was a call for a “Day of Rage” on 4th February. As Michel Chossudovsy has pointed out (viii) the Ambassador has an interesting cv., diplomacy possibly not being one of his towering strengths. He is currently temporarily withdrawn, having been pelted with tomatoes.
Syria has been under embargo since 2004. The US has frozen all the country’s assets. Yet Syria opened it’s borders to two million Iraqi refugees, after the 2003 invasion, with no recompense. Libya had one hundred thousand. The displaced keep fleeing and dying, the region lives in constant fear as to who is the next target.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International Director Kate Allen, cites Syrian diplomats as representatives of “repression and injustice.”
Perhaps we need to look a little closer to our Western home, for that.
Incidentally, 31st October, the day Libya was declared liberated and NATO’s “mission” over, was the anniversary of the US, UK and France’s bombing of Egypt in 1956, to force the re-opening of the Suez Canal. On the same day in 1968, Lyndon B. Johnson announced the cessation of the bombardment of North Vietnam.
Unending decades of lies dressed as liberation, and asset grabs as tyrants who terrorize.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=27420
November 2nd, 2011, 11:46 pm
Ghufran said:
Dear majed
We should not ignore those average non armed Homsis who were killed by anti regime forces in cold blood for nothing but to satisfy an urge for revenge. The latest crime was the slaughter of 11 Homsis,5 were 50 years or older,who were going home in a van,the girls were released and all men were killed,their names are available,I yet have to see revlon’s read alfatiha on their innocent souls.
I happen to know a number of Homsis and i can not accept your version of the events in Homs because you only want to focus on one killer,the regime forces,and give a free pass to anti regime fighters and assassins.To claim that everybody who died was either killed by the regime or was attacked in self defense is obviously not supported by daily reports and funerals in Homs.
November 2nd, 2011, 11:54 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
No Ghufran you are wrong again, those who were killed ,they did not get killed by the demonstrators, they were killed by Shabbiha,in vague circumstances, verify before you blame the demonstrators,can you prove beyond any shaddow of doubt that they were killed by demonstrators, the answer is no,The army must leave,and shabbiha and security forces will be confronted, peaceful demonstrators should be allowed,otherwise the regime is lying.
November 3rd, 2011, 12:06 am
jad said:
أنت جريح .. وجرحك كبير كعصا موسى .. يبلع كل جراح العالم
by بقلم: نارام سرجون
وأخيراً.. وصلت طلائع الاسلاميين الينا في هذا الشرق.. حملتهم الينا الثورات.. ثورات الحرية والديمقراطية حملت الينا أنفاس الاسلاميين.. وللأسف فانها ليست بالأنفاس العطرة.. نفس كريه من فم مصطفى عبد الجليل ونفس مميت من فم راشد الغنوشي.. وبخار عفن من زفير اردوغان وهاهم اخوان مصر يتجشؤون في صناديق الاقتراع.. وفوق كل هذا نرى قيء رياض الشقفة على أرصفة السوريين.. أنا من يقول هذا الكلام وأنا من كنت يوما أحلم بالاسلاميين يكبّرون ويسبّحون الله في البرلمانات العربية وفي أروقة المؤسسات الحكومية.. كنت على الدوام أعتقد ان الاسلاميين لم ينالوا فرصتهم في عملية ديمقراطية وآن لنا أن نستمع اليهم وأن نصوّت لهم.. وآن لهم أن يقولوا كلمتهم دون أن تعترضهم السجون والمعتقلات.. ولكن الربيع العربي كشف لي كم كانت أحلامي ساذجة ..ورومانسية.. وغبية
الأقدار وضعتني أمام مشهدين في حياتي في منتهى التناقض والغرابة…المشهد الأول عندما سمعت باسم راشد الغنوشي أول مرة عام 1987 عندما تناولت صحيفتي “كيهان العربي” الايرانية و”الوحدة الاسلامية” اللتين كانتا توزعان مجانا في دمشق لتأييد الثورة الايرانية وقد خصصت الجريدتان صفحة كاملة عن المناضل الاسلامي التونسي “راشد الغنوشي” ووضعت صورته خلف قضبان السجن الذي زجه به الحبيب بورقيبة ..منذ ذلك اليوم تعرفت على الغنوشي وقرأته وتابعته باهتمام وتأييد حتى خروجه الى منفاه الأوروبي ..الى أن عاد أخيرا الى تونس ليقود أسلمة المجتمع ويعترف بالمجلس الوطني السوري وينضم للجوقة القطرية القرضاوية.. اليوم عاد الغنوشي اليّ ليس عبر مقالات كيهان العربي بل عبر ثورة غامضة وصناديق الاقتراع .. ولكن لقائي به خلا من الحرارة والانفعال وطغا عليه الفتور والبرود ثم الثلج والجليد .. وندمت على تلك اللحظة التي قرأت فيها عنه وسمعت به..وستكون بالنسبة لي غلطة العمر..
والمشهد الثاني كان عندما تعاطفت مع البيانوني وتأثرت بظهوره في لقاء مع سامي كليب في برنامج “زيارة خاصة” على الجزيرة وقد دمعت عيناه وهو يقول بأن أول ماسيفعله اذا سمح له بدخول سوريا هو أن يزور قبر أبيه !! .. ويومها تمنيت أن أرى صدر الدين البيانوني يرتشف قهوته في مقهى الروضة في دمشق قبل دخوله عضوا أصيلا الى اجتماع البرلمان السوري ..فاذا بالبيانوني الذي بكى لتذكر قبر أبيه … يوسع ويزيد مع صديقه الشقفة من مساحات مقابرنا وموتانا..حتى صرنا نتعثر بالقبور والموتى في طول البلاد وعرضها ..وصار قبر أبيه قبرا لنا جميعا..
اليوم وبفتوحات المسلمين الجدد في ليبيا وتونس ومصر وتركيا سيهدأ الصحابة القلقون في مراقدهم وسيرفع الرسول في الجنة يديه الى السماء قائلا: جاء الحق وزهق الباطل .. وسيجلس علي مع معاوية ويجلس الحسين مع يزيد يحتفلون بعلو الاسلام وارتقائه وموت الفتنة ..وسنعرف معنى “اليوم اكملت لكم دينكم “..لأن اكتمال الدين كان بالقرضاوي .. المنتظر ..وبالغنوشي المنتصر ..
لاأخفيكم أن قلبي يدق بعنف ..وبسرعة ..لكن ليس من لقاء اللحظة التي انتظرتها عقدين كاملين ..وليس من صدمتي بمواليد الثورات العربية ..بل بسبب أنني قررت أن أرتكب جريمة لم يخطر ببالي يوما أن أرتكبها عن سبق اصرار وترصد .. لقد قررت أن أطلق النار على حلمي الاسلامي الذي وصل اليّ وطرق باب بيتي وعندما فتحت الباب ووجدته مخيفا كالمتشردين .. خارجا على القانون ويتعاطى حبوب الهلوسة والمخدرات ويمارس الزنا في باريس ولندن و ..الدوحة ..وتل أبيب ..ولديه أبناء غير شرعيين ..
لاأريد الاستيلاء على آلام الآخرين الذين لايرون ماأرى لكني سأقول ودون تردد أن الربيع العربي قد ارتكب مجزرة في كل افكاري الاسلامية التي عاشت معي زمنا طويلا .. وأنني وجدت نفسي اطلق النار على أحلامي الاسلامية بقسوة ودون تردد ..كما لو كنت راعي بقر يفتك بمسدسه بقرية آمنة من الهنود الحمر..وكما لو كنت باروخ غولدشتاين الاسرائيلي يقتل المصلين في المسجد الابراهيمي ..
بعد الذي حدث وبعد افتضاح لااسلام الاسلاميين وأنهم كغيرهم من طلاب السلطة ..فاسدون يبيعون ويشترون ويقتلون ولامانع لديهم من اهداء صوت الأذان في مساجدنا لمن يوصلهم الى السلطة حتى لو كان برنار هنري ليفي ..بعد كل هذا عرفت أن الحركة الاسلامية قد تم ترويضها بدءا من تركيا الى مصر وقلب الأزهر.. وأنها صارت مثل ممتلكات مزارع الموز الأمريكية وسعرها مثل أسعار خام برنت وأسهم السندات..
بعد هذا الذي حدث ياصديقي .. ماذا يعني ان تترقب الأحداث الثورية حولك في تونس ومصر وليبيا وسوريا وقد صرت تميل الى الصمت؟ .. ماذا يعني ان تقرأ مقالا لكاتب ثم تضع الجريدة بهدوء دون تعليق؟ ماذا يعني ان تجلس أمام جهاز التلفزيون ولاتنبس ببنت شفة؟ ثم ماذا يعني أن تتغير من منفعل حانق تقاطع السطور التي تقرأها بلفظة غاضبة كل سطرين ..ومن مشتعل بالمشاعر وانفلات اللسان بالسباب .. الى كتلة من الرماد بلا نار ولادخان أعصاب ..
لاتحزن ياصديقي ولاتبتئس ان قلت لك: أنت جريح .. وجرحك كبير كعصا موسى .. يبلع كل جراح العالم
“أنت جريح” .. وللمفارقة الكبيرة .. عنوان جميل لرواية مؤلمة للكاتب التركي (ايردال أوز) كتب فيها تجربة سجين سياسي تركي يتعرض للتعذيب فتتغير شخصيته وتتبلد انسانيته وينتقل اليه شعور الجلاد والسجانين باللامبالاة.. فالسجين الذي يتعرض للضرب المبرح على قدميه حتى تتقاطر دماؤه على بلاط غرفة التعذيب ويتفتت لحم قدمية يرى كيف تأتي عاملة التنظيف لتمسح الأرض ببرود وكأنها لاترى ذلك السائل الأحمر الذي كان قبل دقائق في جسده يمور بالحياة ..ويتعجب من لامبالاة الجلادين بصراخه من رش الملح على جراحه المتهتكة ولحمه النازف المتفتت .. التحولات الهائلة في الروح والأمل والانسان تحدثها الصدمات الكبرى ..فتنتهي الرواية بأن يتحول الى سجين بلا ملامح ولاروح ويصبح كغيره من السجناء والسجانين ..بلا ملامح انسانية وبلا اسم
لا يستطيع أي منا هذه الأيام أن ينكر حقيقة أن ماحدث في هذا الذي يسمى “الربيع العربي الاسلامي” قد أحاله الى سجين بلا ملامح وأن الربيع الاسلامي قد أصابه بالجراح .. وأن روحه تخاصمه سواء كان منتصرا ام مهزوما .. وانه كان في غرف التعذيب .. والاستجواب .. والمحاكم الذاتية ..ولايستطيع أحد أن يتغاضى عن حقيقة أن ماحدث ثقبه في قلبه .. وثقبه في حلمه .. اننا غارقون في الأسئلة الغارقة في الأسئلة ! الأسئلة التي تديننا جميعا ..
أين كانت في مجتمعنا كل هذه الغوغاء التي تسمى ثوارا؟ وهل كان لدينا كل هذا الكم من اللصوص الطلقاء؟ وهل كان لدينا كل هذا الغباء الذي ينتجه مجتمع بدائي حتى يحركه مرة عرعور ومرة أردوغان ومرة روبرت فورد ومرة حمد ومرة عزمي بشارة؟ وهل كان لدينا
كل هذه الرثاثة والهزال الأخلاقي حتى نفرز هذا النوع من المعارضة؟؟
هل هذه هي حقا الثورة؟ هل كل الثورات التي تعلمناها وقرأنا عنها كانت تمارس هذه الدناءة ثم يكتب لنا كتبتها أنها ثورة مقدسة طاهرة؟ وهل كل الثورات الي تعلمنا أنها طاهرة كقلب النار ومضيئة كالقبس ..بهذا الاتساخ والسواد؟ وهل لكل ثورة تعلمناها وقدسناها عرّاب في الخارج؟ وبئر نفط ؟ أو سلطان سلجوقي؟ ومفت؟ ولها قتلتها المباركون؟ وهل لكل ثورة نصيب من الجنون والحماقة؟ وهل كل ثوراتنا جاهلة عمياء؟ وهل كل الثورات في جيدها حبل من مسد؟ وحبل من ناتو؟
لاأريد ممارسة الديبلوماسية ولاالكلام المنقوع في الكنايات والتوريات اللغوية .. بل ولم أعد أستطيع مجاملة البعض ممن لايزالون ببراءة يعتقدون أن في سوريا والمنطقة ثورة .. وثوار ..وأن هذا الشرق يمور بالثورة ويزدحم بالثوار ..وسنتحدث بنفس مستوى الصراحة والشفافية التي تعاهدنا عليها وسأقول: انني حزين جدا ومتألم جدا لأنني أكتشف أننا أنتجنا ثورات مليئة بالغوغاء واللصوص والطلقاء والأغبياء ..ومليئة بالسلاح المجنون واللحى ..والكذب والاحتيال .. ثورات مباركة من القرضاوي الكذاب في قطر الى الغنوشي المحتال في تونس .. وهاأنذا أقول ودون تردد: ان كانت قلوب الأنظمة مليئة بالفساد والديكتاتورية التي كرهنا، فان قلوب الثورات العربية مليئة بالشر ..والنفط .. ومليئة بالموساد . ..وسأقول ودون تردد أيضا: انني لم أجد في ثوراتنا شخصا واحدا يمكن أن يكون قائدا .. قادة ثوراتنا صغار ..أخجلوني وأذلوني بضآلتهم من غليون الى الغنوشي..وثورات بلا قادة كبار لن تكون الاقطعانا من الأبقار الوحشية الهائمة على وجهها..
واذا كانت الديمقراطية حلما فانني الآن صرت أخشى وصولها الينا وسأعمل على اغلاق الباب في وجهها لأن الديمقراطية محشوة بالمال وتقبل بالرشوة وتحب الأثرياء والأضواء وتميل لأن تمشي مع من يسقيها الدهاء الاعلامي ..هل سأصدق أن انتخابات حرة في أي بلد عربي بعد اليوم لن تصنعه أموال أبو متعب وحمد وسعد الحريري؟! ..ولن تقوم به الجزيرة والعربية وال سي ان ان وال بي بي سي؟! ..بل ما الفرق بين انتخابات يديرها جهاز مخابرات وبين انتخابات ديمقراطية يديرها مال النفط ؟؟
من جديد أيها المواطن العربي لاأملك الا أن أقول لك: أنت جريح.. وجرحك كبير كعصا موسى يبلع كل جراح العالم.. جلادوك يوالون ضربك بالسياط في كل مكان ومن كل مكان.. في الفضائيات وفي الصحف وفي مواقع الانترنت.. بلا رحمة ولاشفقة..
أسئلة متلاحقة كما لو كنت في فروع التحقيق ..لم يختلف السؤال على الاطلاق بل تغيرت المفردات ..فبدلا من: هل أنت ضد النظام؟ صرت تسمع: هل أنت ضد الثورة؟ وبدلا من: هل تتآمر على النظام؟ صرت تسمع: هل تتآمر على الثورة؟ وبدلا من: هل تؤيد العملاء والخونة؟ صرت تسمع: هل تؤيد الفاسدين والقتلة؟ ..وهكذا ..أسئلة الثورة مشتقة من أسئلة الأنظمة ..لتبدأ عملية الاستيلاء على غرف التعذيب .. واعتماد معادلة جورج بوش الأزلية: من ليس معنا فهو ضدنا ..ولايوجد وسطية في المواقف ..ولايوجد وطن ..بل مجلس وطني .. ولاتوجد دولة … بل ثورة.. وماأدراك ماالثورة !!!
http://serjoonn.blogspot.com/2011/11/blog-post_03.html
November 3rd, 2011, 1:06 am
Dale Andersen said:
Question for SC:
How many regime supporters who post comments here will be dead within a year?
Something to ponder…
November 3rd, 2011, 1:12 am
Syria no kandahar said:
Norman
I think you are bringing very good point.I think that the theory that the regime is trying to show the world a (mini-Syria )in Homs if the MB animals have control is very likely.if we think about the other cities like Hama,things were as bad yet the army was able to clean it up quickly.50 or 60 thousand soldiers would be able to clean the terrorist gangs quickly.The actions of MB terrorists in Homs are a death trap to them in many ways:
1-Syrians in general now know what MB revolution will do to them.
2-Arabs and the world know that peaceful protests are history and this is now Taliban movement.
3-when the Army eventually cleans up these rats,it will be very unlikely that they will be coming back.
One might think that it is not ethical for the army to let these terrorist continue to
Terrorize Homs,but this is a war and MB have used no ethical way in this war.they have gotten so good in using all kind of psychiatric war and have so much alliance with any one who has an interest in destroying Syria .
Majed keep your Salafi head in the sand,continue to close your eyes as you see your country being destroyed by Islamic extremist,continue to have your Shabiha hallucinations which no ones else believe except you.You and your Islamic extremist terrorists coward friends will eventually be just remembered in history as we now remember Hollako or Jenkizkan,you will be just a black dirty spot in a white Syrian page.
November 3rd, 2011, 1:22 am
jad said:
Interesting announcement:
الجيش السوري الحر
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
بيان صادر عن الجيش السوري الحر
((نؤكد على التزامنا بإحترام قرار جامعة الدول العربية بوقف كافة العمليات العسكرية على كامل الأراضي السورية طالما التزم النظام .وفي حال أخلال النظام بشروط الجامعة سنضطر لحماية المتظاهرين والعمل على أسقاط النظام بالقوة مهما كلفنا ذلك من ثمن))
والنصر لشعبنا الأبي
وعاشت سوريا حرة أبية
November 3rd, 2011, 1:26 am
jad said:
Any trouble between Asa’d and Wawi of FSA on the AL agreement?
قائد جيش سوريا الحر:الاتفاق الذي وقع بالجامعة العربية لعبة سياسية حقيرة
الخميس 03 تشرين الثاني 2011،
اعتبر قائد عمليات “الجيش السوري الحر” النقيب عمار الواوي في حديث لـ”الشرق الأوسط” إن “ما حدث اليوم من اتفاق بين النظام السوري ووفد الجامعة العربية، هي لعبة سياسية حقيرة يلعب فيها النظام على الوقت بدل الضائع لأن النظام وجد نفسه قد سقط شرعيا بالنسبة إلى الشارع، وسقط أمنيا وعسكريا لأنه لن يستطع كبح جماح الثورة الشعبية السلمية، وقبل بشكل مبدئي الاتفاق لأن هناك 15 يوما آخر لبدء الحوار، وبالتالي أن ما قامت به الجامعة العربية هو الركض وراء السراب”. وأضاف ان “وزير خارجية قطر يعلم علم اليقين أن النظام لن يطبق أيا من هذه النقاط. بالعكس هو يقول إنه لا حوار ولا سحب للجيش ولا إفراج عن المعتقلين”.
ودعا الواوي “الضمائر الحية في جميع دول العالم إلى أن يقفوا إلى جانب الشعب السوري الذي يذبح يوميا على يد الطاغية بشار الأسد وزبانيته في الأمن والشبيحة”. مؤكدا أن “الجيش السوري الحر لن يقبل بالمراوغة التي يقوم بها النظام وهو يزرع الألغام على الحدود مع لبنان بدلا من إسرائيل، وسنقاومه ونسقطه بثورة الشعب السلمية سواء وقف العالم معنا أم لم يقف”.
Turkey is obviously not happy with the agreement, it’s promising its puppets with ‘heaven’
مصادر سورية معارضة للشرق الاوسط: انقرة وعدتنا بقطع العلاقات مع الاسد
الخميس 03 تشرين الثاني 2011،
كشفت مصادر في المعارضة السورية لـ”الشرق الأوسط” أن “أنقرة وعدت المعارضة السورية بأربع خطوات سيعلن عنها رئيس الحكومة التركية الرجب طيب أردوغان خلال زيارته، وهي قطع جميع العلاقات مع النظام السوري، وانضمامها إلى المقاطعة الاقتصادية الشاملة والكاملة ضد نظام الرئيس السوري بشار الأسد”.
November 3rd, 2011, 1:59 am
Dale Andersen said:
From the EU/CIA/Jew/Salafist/Saudi press:
“…former Israeli Mossad chief Meir Dagan said Israel should be “praying” for Bashar Assad’s regime in Syria to fall, since any replacement would be Sunni, and hence likely to be less friendly toward Shi’ite Iran…”
November 3rd, 2011, 2:44 am
SYR.EXPAT said:
Finally some good news. At least at the surface. The last thing anyone should wish for is civil war. I would like to be optimistic and hope for the best. I haven’t had time to read the AL initiative, but from what I heard, one of the conditions was to allow foreign media to report freely. If true, this would signal a major shift in this uprising. We’ve been calling for this since day one. The professional camera is the best way to make it harder for anyone to commit crimes openly.
Let’s see what the next week or two will bring.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:46 am
Mina said:
So if mini-demos are organized around the hotels where the journalists are while people get killed in villages, it should do the trick?
November 3rd, 2011, 4:09 am
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
Election Finance
..بل ما الفرق بين انتخابات يديرها جهاز مخابرات وبين انتخابات ديمقراطية يديرها مال النفط ؟؟
Mr. Sen
You will win the first type.
And you will probably run in the second type, chances are someone smarter than you will relegate you to writing bad scenarios of C rated movies and series.
In both cases, you will be trying to sell your pen to the highest bidder, stealing the blood of the martyrs, and crowding the scene of legitimate intellectuals with the stinch of your writing.
And by the way, the quality of your writing is deteriorating. You now sound like a bassam alkadi wannabe.
November 3rd, 2011, 4:13 am
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
INSPIRING
From the article quoted in 68
And a way to put out a few amputated legs of friendship, and some dead Sheppard boys and girls under 12 .
What a load of nonsensical feilure of intellect. Mines as hands of friendship. Now I understand where SNK and other folks here get their inspiration to write one sentence crying for the dead and in the other calling for killing their children. How sloppy.
November 3rd, 2011, 4:25 am
Amir in Tel Aviv said:
No one is fooled, and every body knows that the Assad junta is playing for more time. I read some analysis which says that Assad’s agreeing to the AL initiative was a shrewd move. I think that it shows that this junta is becoming more desperate. If Assad was indeed strong, he would have never agreed to negotiate with the “terrorists” (or the armed terrorist gangs). Accepting the AL initiative only shows that this junta drives on it’s last drops of oil.
.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:18 am
annie said:
Dear HAMSTER, love all of your posts. They are all quotable, and I quote them outside this den of inequity where only you and a few more daring souls survive (chapeau to TARA). Bravo and courage
November 3rd, 2011, 6:20 am
MONTAGNARD said:
Hamster @80
Stop your incitement. Syria did not lay mines on the Lebanese border!
November 3rd, 2011, 7:47 am
Syria no kandahar said:
Annie
Remember your affection with the late Arboud writings:f..k,boiling soldiers in urine…do you hang them on your door?
MB hamster
You like to stay in war like your rat friends in Homs,don’t you?Are you proud of peaceful act done by them?Are you happy with the way life is in Homs today?who made life a hell in Homs ?what a great secular movement you are supporting in Homs,it should be saluted by all Hallween lovers.you turned Homs into a ghosts town.Homsis thank god every day they are not dead.that is the peak of homsis dreams under the Syrian bastard Talibans,and some times Homsis dream is to be dead.Why don’t you go to Homs and join your jihadist extremist terrorist dudes?Stop buses and have the thrill of killing?enjoy the fantasy of being a criminal in monk uniform.you are a supporter of dark,criminal
Movement.you and your Islamic mentally MB friends on this blog have no good intentions for Syria.if you did you would have supported the Al plan.
November 3rd, 2011, 8:18 am
norman said:
The civil war is full speed ahead, will the AL take responsibility for the killing or they expect the Syrian Arab army who stopped the war in Lebanon to do nothing and let the people kill each other.
2011-11-03 14:05:41
يوم دام ٍ قي حمص 72 جثة في أقل من 24 ساعة
اصوات اطلاق رصاص واسلحة ثقيلة سمعت في المدينة الاحد
قتل 72 شخصاً في مدينة حمص في الأربع وعشرين ساعة الأخيرة في عمليات قتل منظمة نفذها مسلحون ملثمون في المدينة وجوارها .
من جهته قال مصدر مطلع لسيريانيوز ” عثر على 27 جثة موضوعة في سيارة نقل مواد غذائية مغلقة بالقرب من مقبرة الفردوس شرق المدينة “.
و أشار المصدر إلى أن مسلحين ملثمين” يستهدفون السيارات العابرة في غير منطقة من المدينة ومحيطها ويخطفون مواطنين أبرياء مما أوقع عشرات القتلى والجرحى “.
و أكد المصدر ” مقتل خمس فتيات وثلاثة شبان بعد إنزالهم من سيارة سيرفيس كانت متجهة إلى حي الزهراء وتعرية الفتيات وقتل الجميع وقد تم نقل الجثث إلى المشفى الأهلي بحمص “.
من ناحية اخرى اكد ناشط من الاهالي يوم الخميس بان اصوات اطلاق رصاص واسلحة ثقيلة سُمعت ، وشوهدت سحب دخان في اكثر من منطقة في المدينة.
ويأتي هذا التصعيد عشية موافقة سورية على المبادرة العربية التي تتضمن سحب الجيش من المدن و السماح لمراقبين من جامعة الدول العربية و ووسائل الإعلام بالدخول إلى سورية .
يشار إلى أن اليومين السابقين شهدا مجزرتين بحق أبرياء شرقي المدينة وغربها على يد مسلحين مجهولين ، حيث تم قتل تسعة أشخاص بالقرب من زيدل شرقي حمص ، وقتل عشرة آخرين في الحولة غربها ، بالتزامن مع احتجاجات في الشارع و مواجهات بين مسلحين و قوات الجيش والأمن .
سيريانيوز – حمص
copy rights © syria-news 2010
November 3rd, 2011, 8:36 am
zoo said:
UN report on International Human development 2011
http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/SYR.html
Syria rankings:
versus the Arab region 19 countries, versus 194 countries worldwide
Health Index: 3/19, 55/194
Education index: 14/19, 131/194
Income index: 13/19, 114/194
Human development index 14/19, 119/194
http://hdr.undp.org/en/data/trends/
November 3rd, 2011, 8:37 am
habib said:
I’m all for free speech, but seriously, what the hell is “Dale Andersen” up to?
November 3rd, 2011, 8:49 am
irritated said:
#87 Habib
One word: gibberish
Solution: Skip
November 3rd, 2011, 8:56 am
zoo said:
After a period of calm, the dogs are barking again
Poll shows strong Israeli support for Iran attack
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gV3Kj1IP9hrgOslFtTqKZzaiuMfA?docId=10caac148f9c4cd1afb6254e1b63a752
By AMY TEIBEL, Associated Press – 5 hours ago
JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli government would have significant support at home for an Israeli military strike against Iran’s nuclear program, according to a poll published Thursday.
The poll was released following reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to persuade Cabinet ministers to authorize such a strike and after Israel successfully tested a missile thought capable of carrying a nuclear warhead to Iran.
Forty-one percent of those questioned by the Dialog polling institute said they would back an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, which many Israelis believe were built to produce bombs.
{…}
November 3rd, 2011, 9:04 am
Revlon said:
Defection of Corporal Afaaq Mohammad Ahmad,
Secretary, office of Colonel Zuhair Hassan who is the Head of section of special operations
Directorate of Air Force Intelligence
انشقاق جديد 2-11-2011
http://www.facebook.com/Syria.Revolution.Intelligence
The following is a summary of his announcement:
For me and on behalf of the 3alawis community I prey for God to bestow mercy.
On our brothers, the Syrians who fell martyrs to violence of Asad gangs.
I hereby announce my defection from both, the corrupt oppressive intelligence system, and the criminal regime for the following reasons:
– Their oppressive practices against civilians.
– The human rights violations that I witnessed in the dungeons of the intelligence systems
– The continuation of the systematic killing, house searches, and the terrorising of civilians and demonstrators.
– Insistence of the regime on inciting sectarian tensions through sending SMS to Alawis, especially in Damascus and Homs carrying fabricated threats, from non-exiting Salafi and Islamic groups.
– The savage crimes that I witnessed in Dar3a, especially Saida massacre and the Black Friday.
I urge all security and armed forces to stop being tools in the hands of the criminal regime, and join the people demanding their stolen rights.
I call upon my sons and elders of the 3alawi community to take a firm stand in the face of this regime and explain its true nature to the misinformed members of the community, and to stand with the civilian demonstrators from other communities.
I call upon Asad to step down; have you not have enough blood on your hands.
I call all Syrians to persevere and be patient; Victory is coming, with God’s will.
Assalmu 3alaikom
November 3rd, 2011, 9:08 am
Revlon said:
The regime has not complied yet with the agreement that he has reached with the AL.
Homs continues to be sheeled by Asad armed forces; 4 civilians have died while the the AL remains silent.
النظام السوري يخرق المبادرة العربية ويواصل قصف حمص وسقوط أربعة شهداء والجامعة العربية تلتزم الصمت
November 3rd, 2011, 9:15 am
Revlon said:
72. Dear Dale Andersen,
“Question for SC:
How many regime supporters who post comments here will be dead within a year?”
Morally? They already are!
November 3rd, 2011, 9:34 am
Tara said:
Revlon
“Morally? They already are!”
Indeed!
Sad, very sad.
November 3rd, 2011, 9:43 am
Syria no kandahar said:
Tara the moral terrorists supporter
November 3rd, 2011, 10:05 am
majedkhaldoun said:
The regime is in clear violation of the AL agreement,with what is going on in Homs, I think AL must say something soon.
The regime is deceiving,procrastinating and buying time, when he says yes, it means NO.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:07 am
norman said:
Majed,
In Homs, People are killing people .
November 3rd, 2011, 10:14 am
louai said:
dear Syria no Kandahar
”One might think that it is not ethical for the army to let these terrorist continue to
Terrorize Homs,but this is a war and MB have used no ethical way in this war”
its actually tha what most of Homsis are thinking , the anger from the government is mounting and growing ,we all feel that the government is not using its all force to restore peace to the city ,its a mystery as why the army did not clean the city so far , they restored peace where ever they entered but not Homs , Homs every day is worst that the other ,the martyrs become just numbers in every day news no one bother to write their names any more , many being kidnapped but you won’t here about kidnapped victims any more ,you need to get killed to qualify be mentioned in the news
i think if the situation continued like this the people of Homs will have to restore peace by their Hands ,i dont see alot of support to the government any more , we feel we left alone .its dangerous if it was true , no one can control whats going to happen if people lost faith in the government , its not fair or ethical to subject Homs to this terrorists , i dont want to think of what would happen if the army left the city and people started to take revenge , you all most knw the the army is not only protecting neighborhoods but its also stopping clashes between neighborhoods ,it will be suicidal to the army to leave now!!
إن عدد الجثث الواصلة إلى المشفى الوطني في حمص خلال ال 24 ساعة الماضية وصل إلى 90 جثة بينها 16 جثة عسكرية، حيث تم تشييع 12 منها إلى مثاويها الأخيرة صباح اليوم بعد وصولها للمشفى في ليل أمس.
كما أن عدد الجثث قابل للارتفاع، مؤكدين ان الحركة الفوضوية تسود كافة المناطق وحالة الرعب تسيطر على المدينة.
أعزائي أعضاء شبكة أخبار حمص نحن لا ندري إن كان انسحاب الجيش انسحاب كامل او جزئي ولا نعرف إن كان تكتيكي او لا و لكن أريد ان اطلب منكم أخوتي دعونا غدا نلتزم البيت و عدم الدخول لأي منطقة مشبوهة و لنكن حذرين حتى تتبين لنا صورة الأوضاع في حمص فالمسلحون كثيرون و القتل أصبح أسهل من شرب الماء رجاءً كونو حذرين
S
https://www.facebook.com/homs.news.network
November 3rd, 2011, 10:15 am
Areal said:
87. habib said:
I’m all for free speech, but seriously, what the hell is “Dale Andersen” up to?
88. irritated said:
#87 Habib
One word: gibberish
Solution: Skip
MY VIEW
This neo con troll calling for murders should have been banned a long time ago.
This is not not about free speech , it is about humanity and civility .
November 3rd, 2011, 10:31 am
Revlon said:
The Arab league agreement remainds me of the Oslo agreement between the PaLO and Israel.
The good news is it aint dead yet!
The bad news is, thousands of palestenians have perished since?
تتكون الخطة مما يلي :
AL plan comprises two items
_______________________________________________________________
«أوّلاً: وافقت الحكومة السورية على ما يلي:
First: The Syrian government has agreed to the following:
1- وقف كافة أعمال العنف من أي مصدر كان حماية للمواطنين السوريين.
1. Cessation of all acts of violence, from any source for the protection of Syrian citizens.
A) Who is going to gurantee the regime’s compliance?
B) Who is going to monitor the regime’s compliance?
C) What level of incompliance would amount to breaking the deal.
D) What is the definition of violence and what are its forms?
E) Is demonstrating without permission an act of violence?
Asad did consider unauthorised demonstrators as anarchists and terrorists in his second speech!
F) Are calls for dismantling the regime, the stepping down and hanging of Asad considered acts of violence?
G) Is there a mechanism for enforcing the cease fire?
H) Who is going to be the judge on the ground to declare whether there was a break in the cease fire and who the offender was?
I) Who Will handle any break of cease fire should it happen?
J) etc…..
2-الإفراج عن المعتقلين بسبب الأحداث الراهنة.
2- The release of those arrested as a result of current events.
A) Whose records are going to be used to decide who was arrested in current events? The human rights or Thug One’s?
B) Will all prisnors of the revolution be released?
C) When will their release be completed?
D) Who will attest to their release?
E) What will happen if the regime fails to release a minority or the majority of the prisnors?
F) The regime might release the prisnors only to arrest them shortly after on the grounds of conspiring to commit violence.
So who will gurantee that they will not be re-arrested?
3-إخلاء المدن والأحياء السكنية من جميع المظاهر المسلحة.
3- Clearing the cities and neighbourhoods of all armed manifestations.
A) Are towns smaller than cities, villages and farms excluded?
B) What is the perimeter of the city to which the armed manifestations shall be withdrawn to?
C) Will security forces in plain cloths and shabbeha, with concealed guns continue their business as usual?
D) Who will monitor the actions and inactions of Shabbeha anhd security forces respectively?
E) etc…..
4- فتح المجال أمام منظمات جامعة الدول العربية المعنية ووسائل الإعلام العربية والدولية للتنقل بحرية في جميع أنحاء سوريا للاطلاع على حقيقة الأوضاع ورصد ما يدور فيها من أحداث».
4- Allowing AL organisation and institutes and Arab and international media to move freely throughout Syria to witness events on the ground.
A) NAre international organisations not allowed?
B) Will the regime be able to veto the presence of representatives of certain countries countries in AL Missions?
C) Who will decide which Arab or international media to be allowed in?
The regime might decide to let in Xinjua, Novoste, Persia,Hizballah’s, Algerian, Sudanese, Brazilian, North Korean and perhaps one or two western correspondants! The net effect is media gain by the regime!
D) etc…
________________________________________________________________
«ثانيا: مع إحراز تقدم ملموس في تنفيذ الحكومة السورية لتعهداتها الواردة في البند السابق تباشر اللجنة الوزارية العربية القيام بإجراء الاتصالات والمشاورات اللازمة مع الحكومة ومختلف أطراف المعارضة السورية من اجل الاعداد لانعقاد مؤتمر حوار وطني خلال فترة أسبوعين من تاريخه».
SECOND:
Upon achieving tangible progress in item one, The AL ministerial committee shall procede with consultations with the Government and various opposition groups in order to hold a conference for a national dialogue within two weeks.
A) What constitutes a tangible progress?
B) Who will judge the achievement to amount to a tangible one?
C) What is the time frame allowed for achieving a tangible progress? Weeks, months?
D) etc….
November 3rd, 2011, 10:38 am
Syria no kandahar said:
Revlon the terrorist propagandist
And what about your terrorists gangs friends ?is the plan asking them to continue killing?
November 3rd, 2011, 10:48 am
majedkhaldoun said:
Norman
“People killing people”
who are the first people, who are the second people?
November 3rd, 2011, 10:52 am
atassi said:
It’s very obvious that the Arab deal excluded Homs for the killing and destructions .. The deal will includes only “Aleppo, Damascus and Qerdaha” !!
Fresh from Homs today
Killing and destruction still going
من على الطريق اول ما مشينا طريق الجسر مسكر
… والتريبه
الانشاءات والتوزيع
شارع البرازيل
كلهن معزولين
عن البلد
دبابات عند الحزب
بي تي ار
كل شي
طبعا اصوات الضرب كتير قويه
هي كلها من عند بابا عمرو
يلي اكيد انهدمت من كتير الضرب
من عند دورا الرئيس الشوارع فاضيه ولا في حددى
حتى نمله مافي
شي ببكي سيارات لاسعاف
رايحه جاي
حتى بالوعر يلي من الصبح
الضرب فيها شغال
من عند الثرايا
ومن كل محل
باعتبار انو سكروها
من كل النواحي
حتى شارع خالد فيه 3 حواجز
لما اجينا كانوا عم يضربو
السوق نفس الشي
الضرب على الناس شغال
كلو هرب
وهنن عم يقتلوا الناس اكتر من 20
واحد اغلبهن طبعا من بابا عمور
فاتوا على البيوت
بي الانشاءات
اما الباقي فاتو عليهن
وفتشو
والبي تي ار
عم تتفتل
هنيك
عزلهن عن باقي البلد
ومبلش فيهن وعلى حكي
عالم
الوضع سيئ جدا جدا
ومتل العاده
قتلو وحبسو
بالشباب
الله يساعد اهلهن
ياحرام
المهم انو اصوات الضرب انفجارات
كل شي
كانو الاسرائيل
صارت هون
حسبي الله ونعم الوكيل حتى عنا بالحاره صاروا يضربو
المرى التالت كنت انا وايه بالشارع ماعرفانين اشتغلو الضرب
الاهم انو من الغابه عند
ثكنات الكليه الحربيه
شوفي هنيك ماحدى بيعرف
وهيك فتلو بالحارات بالوعر
وضربو
بس الشارع فاضي
كل الناس متخبيه
من كتير الضرب
بالوعر كمان
في ناس راحت طلعت
بعرف ناس صاروا بالمشتى
هربو
الله يهدهن
يارب
November 3rd, 2011, 11:01 am
Areal said:
REALITY from Russian media
The Arab League has announced it’s reached a deal with Syria on easing the country’s long-running political crisis. The agreement urges Damascus to immediately withdraw security forces from the streets, release jailed demonstrators, and start dialogue with the opposition. Syria also agreed to allow rights groups and Arab League watchdogs into the country. But the U.S. still says it wants to see President Assad resign. Independent journalist James Corbett says the Western focus on Syria is part of a much bigger game.
RT on Twitter http://twitter.com/RT_com
RT on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/RTnews
November 3rd, 2011, 11:01 am
ann said:
3 reasons why the Libyan war model won’t work in Syria
November 3, 2011
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/worldview/3-reasons-why-the-libyan-war-model-wont-work-in-syria/article2223743/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=World&utm_content=2223743
>> The diplomatic problem of legitimacy
Reviled despot Col. Gadhafi had few friends and no regional strategic significance. In sharp contrast, Syria has close ties to Iran and lies at the heart of the Middle East. Before the bombing began in Libya, a UN Security Council mandate was needed to ‘legitimize’ the war.
Following the condemnation of the Arab League, even Russia and China agreed to NATO military action in Libya. But despite the cries of Syrian protesters, both Moscow and Beijing remain opposed to western military interference in the Middle East. Both have close and complex ties to Syria and, more importantly, to Syria’s much larger neighbour and patron, Iran. And both are veto-wielding permanent members of the Security Council.
>> The military difficulties of geography and power
Oil-rich Libya, with most of its population in coastal cities stretching along the Mediterranean had an ill-equipped military and a hard core of mercenaries mainly employed for domestic oppression. Syria’s far larger, more modern air force and array of anti-aircraft missiles would pose a far tougher opponent. While a sustained bombing campaign would overwhelm Syria’s military might, the risk of losses would be far higher. Syria’s location, size and military make it a far tougher target.
To attack Libya, NATO’s warplanes, including Canada’s, could fly from Italian bases in Sicily, a short hop across the southern Mediterranean, to targets strung along the Libyan coast. Small French and British aircraft carriers served as platforms for helicopter gunships. Constant air patrols could be overhead with quick runs offshore for refueling from air tankers.
From a military standpoint, it was a relatively easy, low-cost, low-risk operation. But to attack Syria would be far more complicated. Turkey would be unlikely to allow air strikes from its bases. A pair of British bases in Cyprus would be insufficient. That would mean at least one, and likely two, huge U.S. aircraft carriers in the eastern Mediterranean. In turn that would make any outside military intervention look far more like another “American” war against a Muslim nation.
>> The dangers of a quagmire
Libya has been called the first big success of President Barack Obama’s ‘low-profile’ doctrine. While a massive barrage of American cruise missiles opened the war by destroying key Libyan targets, the ongoing and important U.S. involvement was largely behind the scenes. French, British and Canadian warplanes flew most of the strike missions.
Syria’s ruthless President Assad may eventually be deposed. But he understands that the West faces a far graver situation if it tries to repeat its Libyan intervention.
“Syria is different in every respect from Egypt, Tunisia and Yemen,” he said in a rare interview this week. “The history is different. The politics is different. Syria is the hub in this region. It is the fault line, and if you play with the ground you will cause an earthquake … Do you want so see another Afghanistan?”
Or, he might have added, a wider war embroiling Israel and Iran.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:08 am
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
I am sure President Assad will soon get these Alciada Salafi Moslem terrorists of Arabia silenced. He is now making Homs a showcase to the world and own Syrians of what will Saudi backed regime in Syria would be like.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:09 am
Revlon said:
Media Shabbeeh Ahamad AlHaj Ali to AlArabia:
Members of the Syrian armyn ought to surrender with their guns or else they will be persued as criminals!!!!
November 3rd, 2011, 11:15 am
jad said:
Dear Louai,
As always, great to read your name on SC.
I agree with you about the feeling by the people in Homs toward the government that it left them alone to face these terrorist gangs.
I doubt that the government or the regime are doing this on purpose, my take is that simply they can’t do the job because of the city layout, they tried to do that many times so far without any success.
In the area where you have trouble, the problem is density and the narrow roads, apparently many of the people in those areas are armed and hiding in apartment building, it’ll cost lots of human lost on both sides including innocent civilian and it may end with Hama like toll, which will be a disaster.
I think that Homsi themselves may have the solution for that by getting together and try to send the terrorists out of their areas, the dilemma of doing that is that the terrorist have lots of support in those area and those who don’t support them are scared and intimidated or even killed.
It’s a very difficult situation in Homs and it won’t get better without some kind of negotiation between the army and the people living in those areas to let all gunmen to go out and give people there the space they need to breath and freely express their opinion without any intimidation from the security.
The other biggest problem facing Homs today is the sectarian hatred between all of it’s elements which may need generations to solve.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:16 am
Ghufran said:
It is all about power and money
Libya will now be asked to pay back and help bankrupt western governments
Russia can only try to save what can be saved.
قال مسؤول روسي عن تصدير الأسلحة أمس الاربعاء ان بلاده فقدت دخلا محتملا يبلغ عشرات المليارات من الدولارات كانت ستحصل عليها من صفقات أسلحة مع الزعيم الليبي المخلوع معمر القذافي.
وروسيا هي ثاني أكبر دولة مصدرة للسلاح وكثيرا ما أشارت الى خسائر تبلغ أربعة مليارات دولار من عقود للسلاح مع ليبيا.
وقال ميخائيل ديمترييف رئيس الهيئة الاتحادية الروسية للتعاون العسكري والفني “رقم الاربعة مليارات دولار ليس الا رقما اسميا. الخسارة الحقيقية في العائدات ربما تزيد على عشرات المليارات من الدولارات.”
November 3rd, 2011, 11:16 am
jad said:
«الإخوان المسلمون».. عقم سياسي وجسم غريب وثقافة دموية ضحيتها حمص
جاء الإعلان الرسمي عن الاتفاق بين سوريا واللجنة الوزارية العربية حول الورقة المنبثقة عنها والتي تهدف لحل الأزمة التي تعيشها سوريا منذ شهور، ليكشف عن حقيقة الموقف الإخواني المتمثل بحلف اسطنبول الذي ترعاه تركيا والولايات المتحدة، وحقيقة المنهج العنفي الذي تتبناه حركة “الإخوان المسلمون” الإرهابية، الذي لا يمكنها التخلي عنه لتأصله في بنيتها، ما يؤكد أن المنضوين في هذه الحركة لا يمتلكون أية ثقافة مدنية أو حضارية تمكنهم من الدخول في عملية سياسية في أو تقديم برنامج سياسي.
وفي الوقت الذي ردت كافة أطراف المعارضة الوطنية بالترحيب على هذا الاتفاق الذي سيمكن من حقن دماء السوريين والضرب على يد الإرهاب التي جعلها تسيل، كان رد الإخوان ردا دمويا لم يخرج عن سياق ثقافتهم التاريخية التي اعتادت الإرهاب طريقة في التعويض عن فشلهم السياسي والديبلوماسي وحتى فشلهم في الحصول على التأييد الجماهيري.
رد الإخوان أتى عبر يوم ليلة دامية أخرى عاشتها مدينة حمص، التي خطط الإخوانيون لتحويلها إلى ساحة لمجازرهم، حيث تشير الأرقام الواردة من المدينة أن أكثر من 50 سوري بين مدنيين وعسكريين قد اسشهدوا أمس بعد أن طالتهم يد الإرهاب الحاقدة، ما يؤكد، بحسب المتابعين للشأن السوري، على أن هذه الحركة كانت ولا تزال “حالة دموية” خارجة عن الثقافة السورية، ولا تنتمي إلى المكون السوري.
ويضيف المراقبون أن هذه الممارسات الإرهابية للإخوان تشير إلى أن رؤوس المؤامرة التي استهدفت سوريا باتت تتخبط، حيث أن تصعيد هؤلاء الإرهابيون لأعمال القتل والخطف والتنكيل تشير إلى فشلهم في العديد من النواحي: أولا، من حيث التأييد الجماهيري فشل المشروع الأخواني في أن يكون له أي دعم شعبي على الأرض، لا بل رد الشعب السوري على المشروع الذي يريد ضرب بلادهم بمسيرات مليونية حاشدة طافت المحافظات السورية من أقصاها لأقصاها حيث تشير الأرقام إلى أنه وخلال الأسبوعين الأخيرين نزل على حوالي عشرة ملايين سوري على أقل تقدير ضمن مختلف المحافظات مؤكدين وقوفهم إلى جانب القيادة السورية والرئيس بشار الأسد، معلنين عن غضبهم الشديد ومطالبتهم بإنزال أقصى درجات العقاب بالذين خانوا الوطن واستباحوا دم أهله.
ثانيا: يرى المراقبون أن الإخوان ومن يرعاهم ممثلا بالحلف التركي الأميركي وبعض الأعراب قد فشلوا فشلا دبلوماسيا ذريعا في أكثر من جولة جربوا فيها الاعتماد على المنظمات الدولية وما تمنحه من صلاحيات في استهداف سوريا. ففي البداية كان الفشل الذي مني به الحلف الغربي ضد سوريا في مجلس الأمن حيث أتى الفيتو الروسي الصيني المزدوج ليمنع تحويل مجلس الأمن منصة لضرب سوريا، هذا الفشل دفع الحلف الغربي لتحريك أدواته من الأعراب للضغط على سوريا عبر طرح الموضوع السوري على الجامعة العربية علها تمكنهم من الوصول إلى تجميد عضوية سوريا واستخدام الجامعة العربية مطية للتدخل الأجنبي في الداخل السوري، لكن الدبلوماسية السورية تحركت من جديد وأثبتت أنها متفوقة على المشروع الذي يستهدفها وتسبقه بخطوات، وتمكنت من إرباك أعدائها وتم التوصل لاتفاق مع الجامعة ضرب فكرة استخدام الأخيرة منبرا للتدخل في الشأن السوري.
ثالثا: الحلف الإخواني الغربي فشل أيضا، بحسب المراقبين، من الناحية الشرعية حيث أنه ومنذ تشكيله قبل شهر من الآن لم يستطع الحصول على أي من المقومات التي تسوغ للدول الغربية المتآمرة تحقيق الغاية التي شكلته من أجلها وهي تحويله إلى “جسد” سياسي والاعتراف به ممثلا للشعب السوري، فواقع الأحداث على الأرض يعكس أن نظرة السوريين للذين انضووا تحت مظلة هذا المجلس لم تتغير على أنهم مأجورون وليسوا سوى أداة تنفذ أجندة غربية، بدليل أن أي من الدول التي عملت على تشكيل هذا المجلس لم تتجرأ على الاعتراف به، واكتفت بإبقائه ورقة ضغط على سوريا لا أكثر.
وبناء على هذه المعطيات، يرى المراقبون أن التصعيد الذي افتعتله العناصر الإخوانية الإرهابية في حمص ليل أمس، كانت إلى حد ما متوقعا لكونهم أدركوا أن الاتفاق الذي تم توقيعه بين سوريا والجامعة العربية قد أحرق ورقتهم السياسية، وبالتالي فإن رد فعلهم الدموي جاء كمحاولة أخيرة للمساومة على مكسب، عبر سفك المزيد من الدم السوري.
وخلص المراقبون إلى أن المجازر التي يرتكبها الإخوانيون، مع الأخذ بعين الاعتبار التصعيد الذي افتلعه يوم أمس رئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب اردوغان ووزير خارجيته، ربما ناتج عن شرخ حاصل في صف المؤامرة على سوريا، وبالتالي لجأت تركيا لتحريك أذرعها الإخوانية في الداخل السوري لعدم إعطاء فرصة للاتفاق الحاصل في الجامعة العربية أن ينعكس انتعاشا في الداخل السوري.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:18 am
jad said:
هل تتورط تركيا بحرب ضد سورية؟
أعربت صحيفة “ميلليت” التركية، عن مخاوفها من تورط تركيا في حرب ضد سوريا لصالح تدخل الغرب ، كما حدث مع العراق وليبيا ، مشيرة إلى أن هذا يأتي في الوقت الذي بدأت فيه بعض وسائل الإعلام الغربية التطرق إلى وجود مفاعل نووي في مدينة “الحسكة” السورية المجاورة للحدود التركية.
وأشارت الصحيفة إلى “أن اكتشاف المفاعل النووي جاء في الفترة التي تبحث فيها بعض الأطراف عن ذريعة للقيام بعملية عسكرية ضد سوريا ، كما فعلوا قبل فترة احتلال العراق من خلال طرح ادعاءات امتلاكه أسلحة كيمياوية ودمار شامل بعهد الرئيس العراقي الراحل صدام حسين وكذلك إطاحة نظام معمر القذافي بحجة حماية الشعب الليبي.
وقالت “والآن تحاول نفس الأطراف الإطاحة بنظام بشار الأسد من خلال سرد بعض القصص أو فبركة أخبار كاذبة بحق سوريا ومع الأسف الشديد إن تلك الأطراف سلمت الدور لتركيا لتنفيذ المشروع المرسوم”.
ونوهت الصحيفة بأنه بدأت بعض الأنباء تؤكد على احتضان تركيا المعارضين السوريين وتدريب ما يسمى “الجيش السوري الحر” .. إضافة إلى ترويج وسائل إعلام تركية تشجيع الهجوم على سوريا ، على حد قولها.
وطالبت الصحيفة تركيا بالتركيز على حل مشاكلها الداخلية بدلا من التدخل بشئون الدول المجاورة من أجل أميركا .. محذرة إياها بأنه إذا دخلت تركيا في حرب مع سوريا ستنجرف لحرب آخرى مع إيران.
من جهة آخرى ، أشارت صحيفة “صباح” التركية إلى أن لتركيا مخاوف من إعداد الرئيس السوري خطة تهدف إلى فتح منطقتي “الحسكة ، دير الزور” أمام عناصر منظمة حزب العمال الكردستاني الانفصالية لكي تكون نقطة انطلاق لتنفيذ عمليات إرهابية في تركيا .. إضافة إلى أنه من الممكن أن تسمح الإدارة السورية برئاسة بشار الأسد بإنشاء إدارة حكم ذاتي في منطقة قامشلي الحدودية مع تركيا لدفعها لموقف حرج وصعب للغاية.
|الديار اللبنانية|
November 3rd, 2011, 11:19 am
atassi said:
Syrian Nationalist Party
Kuss Amouack Inta wil Assad .. Walla we will burn you and him
November 3rd, 2011, 11:20 am
jad said:
خارطة طريق أميركية أوروبية …لتعديل مايسمى بـ” المجلس الوطني السوري”
اعد فريق من الخبراء في مجلس الامن القومي الاميركي بطلب من رئيس الملف السوري – الفلسطيني الاسرائيلي بريم كومار Prem kumar.
وبالتنسيق مع اخصائيين في الاتحاد الاوروبي «خارطة طريق» لتلتزم ببنودها الغالبية العظمى من مكونات المعارضة السورية او على اقل تعديل المجلس الوطني السوري المتمثل برئيسه برهان غليون.
وبحسب الخطة التي اعدها الجانب الاميركي – الاوروبي المشترك بهدف تسهيل اكتساب الاعتراف الدولي بشرعيته ينبغي على المجلس الوطني السوري اتخاذ مواقف واضحة وصريحة من قضايا جوهرية اساسية سواء من تصدرها لطبيعة وشكل واهداف النظام المستقبلي في الداخل السوري او من القضايا الخارجية الاقليمية وتحديدا في موضوع النزاع العربي – الاسرائىلي.
ويشدد معدو الخطة على ضرورة اسراع المعارضة السورية بالإعلان عن برنامج عملها المستقبلي والضمانات التي عليها تقديمها لعواصم القرار الدولي استنادا الى ما جاء في نقاط خارطة الطريق.
ولحظت الوثيقة الاميركية – الاوروبية مجموعة من الاسئلة على المعارضة السورية ان ترد عنها ببيان رسمي يعمم على وسائل الاعلام العالمية على ان تتولى في الوقت نفسه شخصيات بارزة في المجلس الوطني السوري بالشرح المسهب عن كل الاجوبة تعزيزا لمصداقية التزامها بتعهداتها المكتوبة والواردة في البيان.
وتتلخص المطالب الاميركية – الاوروبية التي جاءت في «خارطة الطريق» بالبنود الآتية:
في الشق الخارجي:
1- موقف النظام الجديد من الصراع العربي الاسرائىلي وعما اذا كان على استعداد لابرام معاهدة سلام وتطبيع مع اسرائىل بعد انسحابها من مرتفعات الجولان.
2- علاقات دمشق مع دول الجوار
اما في الشق الداخلي فتمحور حول رؤيتها (اي المعارضة) لطبيعة النظام ومدى الإلتزام بنبذ التطرف عبر اقامة دولة ديموقراطية ترتكز اسسها على التعايش وتفاعل الحضارات والعرقيات واحترام حقوق الانسان وضمان حرية المعتقد.
باريس ـ بدرا باخوس الفغالي – الديار
November 3rd, 2011, 11:29 am
ann said:
Gulf bloggers persecuted
The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia both rank low on press freedom, with the latter coming in 157 out of 178 countries in Reporters Without Borders’ 2010 report. Both countries have also managed to avoid the large-scale protests seen by neighbouring Bahrain, which some analysts say is a result of fear on behalf of dissidents.
Their fear is certainly justified: In the UAE, five activists – including one prominent blogger, Ahmed Mansoor – were arrested for signing a petition calling for democratic reforms. All five men face charges of threatening state security, undermining public order and insulting the president, the vice-president and the crown prince of Abu Dhabi.
The men have refused to appear in court, protesting what they see as a political crackdown. Meanwhile, Reporters Without Borders claims that the trial is deliberately being dragged out over a period of several months for the purpose of keeping the activists in prison.
In next-door Saudi Arabia, a similar theme as three men detained on October 18 remain in prison more than a week later. Their alleged crime? Creating a video showing poverty in Riyadh. The three men – Feras Bugnah, Hosam al-Deraiwish and Khaled al-Rasheed – produce a regular web programme called “We Are Being Cheated”. The programme, launched this past summer, tackles problems in Saudi society that aren’t often discussed. Previous episodes of the programme focussed on traffic police, inflation of food prices and Saudi youth.
A Saudi journalist, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said there’s speculation that the local Riyadh government – rather than the interior ministry, which usually conducts such arrests – was responsible for the three men’s continued detention. The journalist said that the three men were called for questioning and went to the office voluntarily, only to be detained.
“These people did nothing wrong, nothing that crossed the line,” said the journalist. “Even the king himself visited these poor neighbourhoods with state TV. This is an example of someone in the Riyadh administration, afraid of looking bad, trying to act more royal than the king.”
More than lip service
In some ways, the world is waking up. Long focussed on leading censors Iran and China, the US and the EU have this year begun to address the threats posed to netizens in the region. The EU recently took steps to regulate the sale of surveillance technology to repressive regimes, while the United States is reportedly investigating Blue Coat over an admission that its technology is being used in Syria.
But bloggers continue to be persecuted. The US and EU have little sway with the Syrian government, but Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain – where bloggers Abduljalil Alsingace and Ali Abdulemam were sentenced to 15 years in prison – are all allies with the US and EU.
In her groundbreaking 2010 speech on internet freedom, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on the US to champion internet freedom around the world. And while in some ways the State Department has stayed true to its word, condemning the blocking of websites and internet shutdowns in Egypt and Libya, its silence on bloggers in allied countries has been deafening. The US has been entirely silent on the bloggers named in this piece.
Europe’s reaction has been somewhat better. Individual EU parliamentarians such as Marietje Schaake – a champion for internet freedom – have spoken out against blogger repression in Bahrain, mentioning Alsingace and Abdulemam, while the parliament recently called for the unconditional release of peaceful political prisoners, including bloggers, in Bahrain. But like the US, Europe seems only capable of words, not action.
The hypocrisy is not lost on bloggers. In June, Bahraini journalist Lamees Dhaif, while on a State Department-sponsored tour of the US, spoke out against the government’s support of her country, stating that the State Department was aware of Bahrain’s repression of journalists and bloggers, but remained silent.
Ali Abdulemam – the Bahraini blogger sentenced to 15 years in absentia this year – had criticised the State Department for hypocrisy toward Bahrain before his 2010 arrest as well, calling out the US government for allowing American companies to sell censorship technology to Bahrain. And after his initial imprisonment in 2010 (he was released briefly in February then went into hiding), Abdulemam testified that he had been tortured in prison.
As the US halts a planned $53m arms sale to Bahrain at the behest of lawmakers and human rights groups, it becomes clearer that any movement towards condemning repression of free speech in those countries will have to come from outside the State Department.
Internet freedom is a worthy goal, and Hillary Clinton’s words offer something to aspire to. But as long as Clinton’s words are not coupled with action and remain contradicted by other foreign policy goals, the State Department’s internet freedom initiative is just lip service.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:34 am
Ghufran said:
A Homsi friend told me that armed men are receiving help from a lot of people in Homs and Hama. It is more than just a group of insurgents shooting at people and the army,it is becoming more of a civil war.Homsis and Hamwis found out that most of those killed by security forces are Sunnis so they revenge by killing alawi civilians and army and security officers,who are both sunni and alawi with a signiicant alawi presence. The insurgents consider sunni officers as guilty as their alawi friends.
For the army to end this by force,tens of thousand of people will be killed. Only a political solution can end this tragedy,that requires negotiations with local leaders who do not trust the regime. The first place for AL mediators to work in is Homs.
I think the regime is guilty and it has earned the Homsis and Hamwis wrath but I can not accept the killing of innocent civilians by armed anti regime forces. A crime is a crime.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:35 am
ann said:
Syria Sends Humanitarian Aid to Friendly Turkish People
Nov 03, 2011
http://www.sana.sy/eng/22/2011/11/03/379804.htm
DAMASCUS, (SANA) – The Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) sent a plane with humanitarian aid to help people affected by the recent earthquake in the Turkish province of Van.
In a statement to the journalists, Minister of State for Red Crescent Affairs, Joseph Sweid, said that the plane carried 40 tons of relief materials, medical supplies and humanitarian aid, in addition to 500 tents, to the friendly Turkish people through cooperation and coordination between the SARC and its Turkish counterpart.
Over 600 people were killed and more than 4100 were injured in the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck eastern Turkey.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:39 am
Ghufran said:
It is time that Hamas and the PA form a national unity government. Palestinians have no friends and they can only trust their people. A new government will receive wide support from most countries and this step will further isolate Israel
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=latest/data/2011-11-03-12-16-23.htm
November 3rd, 2011, 11:50 am
Areal said:
104. ann said:
3 reasons why the Libyan war model won’t work in Syria
November 3, 2011
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/worldview/3-reasons-why-the-libyan-war-model-wont-work-in-syria/article2223743/?utm_medium=Feeds%3A%20RSS%2FAtom&utm_source=World&utm_content=2223743
>> The military difficulties of geography and power
But to attack Syria would be far more complicated.
Turkey would be unlikely to allow air strikes from its bases.
A pair of British bases in Cyprus would be insufficient. That would mean at least one, and likely two, huge U.S. aircraft carriers in the eastern Mediterranean. In turn that would make any outside military intervention look far more like another “American” war against a Muslim nation.
REALITY of US Air Force
US Air Force base in Turkey near Syrian border ( Adana )
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incirlik_Air_Base
http://www.incirlik.af.mil/
Note to mention US Air Force bases bases in Irak , Koweit , Saudi Arabia
November 3rd, 2011, 11:52 am
ann said:
SNP
You have every right to report the blogger of post number 111 to the FBI for directly threatening your life on an open internet board.
November 3rd, 2011, 11:53 am
Areal said:
Assange could face torture in US but arrest won’t stop leaks’
RussiaToday
Uploaded by RussiaToday on Nov 3, 2011
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange may find himself on Swedish soil very soon, after losing his battle against extradition from Britain. There, he’ll have to answer sexual misconduct allegations, which he denies and describes as politically-motivated.
UK-based investigative journalist Tony Gosling says mainstream media can’t produce investigative work so Assange is very crucial and everyone needs to defend him.
November 3rd, 2011, 12:03 pm
ann said:
AL plan receives mixed responses from Syrian oppositions – 2011-11-3
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.asp?id=28068
DAMASCUS, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) — A peace plan for ending the months- long Syrian political crisis reached between the Syrian government and the Arab League (AL) received Thursday mixed responses from analysts and opposition figures in and out of Syria.
Mohammad Habash, a parliamentarian who heads the Third Way movement in Syria, said the Syrian government, by fully accepting the plan, took a responsible stance and overcame many reservations and formalities.
Habash commended the AL for taking a “right step in dealing with the Syrian situation,” and urged the Syrian opposition to response positively.
“The opposition should undertake positive steps and overcome its wounds for the sake of saving Syria,” Habash told Xinhua.
The peace plan, announced by Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani after an extraordinary meeting in Cairo Wednesday, calls for stopping violence and withdrawing the military vehicles from Syrian streets, in addition to releasing detainees and holding a dialogue between the Syrian authorities and the opposition.
Loai Hussain, a Syrian opposition figure at home, welcomed the AL deal and expressed hope “the Syrian government will halt its violent response to the protesters.”
However, he remains skeptic about the government’s “real intentions” behind its acceptance of the deal. “Our experience with the regime makes us skeptic about its real intentions,” he told Xinhua.
Khalaf al-Muftah, a political analyst, said the AL deal has closed the door in the face of some abroad-based opposition figures who were aiming to internationalize the Syrian crisis to pave the way for foreign intervention.
“By approving the AL initiative, Syria proved that it was serious about reform,” Muftah told Xinhua by phone.
On the other side, some opposition figures abroad slammed the Syrian government’s acceptance of the AL plan as attempts “to buy time.”
Opposition figure Najeeb Ghadban told pan-Arab al-Jazeera TV right after the official declaration of the deal that “the Syrian regime is not serious and trying to buy time only.”
Some opposition groups abroad said they would accept nothing but the ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The broad-based Syrian National Council on Wednesday called on the AL to suspend the Syrian government’s membership and recognize the council as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people.
However, the council’s repeated calls for foreign intervention to oust Assad were rejected by the opposition groups at home.
November 3rd, 2011, 12:08 pm
louai said:
thank you Jad for your comment 107 and for sharing with us naram sargoun’s article in your post number 71
you are right the army tried to solve the problem 3 times so far without success for many reasons without success but many Homsis think and i am one of them that they could do better
the terrorists have alot of support in areas like Baba amro Khaldia babeldreeb 3asheera and babelsba3 , all those areas are like small towns inside Homs their inhabitants are manly bedouins (apart of babelsba3)who settled and integrated in the Homsi society but they kept their own bedouins traditions and values like Revenge
the government is trying to secure the city without success because of the reasons you mentioned, i do fully agree BUT they are not doing their best in my opinion , the army did not enter Babamr till recently and there are not enough forces in the streets for sure , in Babelsba3 north entrance there is one BTR and 4 solders !! a terrorist sniper can easily shoot them down from inside babelsba3 (and they do daily)because the army was not inside till recently as well , the same for babeldreeb ,4 solders and one tank !!!
what Homsis are thinking right now , how come the army secured all the cities it entered but not Homs? this is angering alot of people specially when they see no enough forces in the streets
another burden on the army’s shoulder is the Homsis from 3akrama and alzahara and wadid al dahab , (all are government supporters and the main victims come from there)those are not the kind of people who will keep suffer on silent forever , the army in many times stopped group of them entering other neighborhoods for revenge .i pray the army will not leave Homs because we all would witness the starting of the Syrian civil war
بحبببك يا حمص | خاص
ارتفاع عدد الجثث في المشفى الوطني بحمص اليوم الى 123 جثة و ذلك بعد العثور على سيارة فيها جثث عند دوار الفاخورة و ايجاد عدد آخر من الجثث بالقرب من مقبرة الفردوس .
بينما لا يزال هناك مخطوفين لم يتم العثور عليهم و لم يجدهم ذويهم بين الجثث في المشافي .
وللتنويه فقط فإن المشفى الوطني كان فيه 24 جثة قبل حادثة حافلة الركاب التي راح ضحيتها 11 مواطنا , أي ان عدد القتلى بدءا من ركاب الحافلة و حتى هذه اللحظة 99 قتيل .
بعضهم مجهولي الهوية
November 3rd, 2011, 12:27 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
@ATTASSI
SNP and me personally have own TODO list when we get to Syria, and the “Attasis Turkmen” are way on top of it. It will be us first, because you oppositionist mercenaries are too dumb and stupid to do anything other than squeeze Assad in the media to a corner. Eventually he will be handing us the power of Syria and Attasi’s better move to Mars now. Seasure of all their assets are the first move, the second making sure they send their daughters to Qurdaha to work as maids.
November 3rd, 2011, 12:30 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
I still see nothing today at the website of the Arab League concerning yesterday’s supposed “agreement” between the Arab League and Syria. From what evidence I do and don’t see on the internet, I must believe that there’s no agreement in writing, and, instead, there’s an informal consensus built from the following foundation:
Also by the way we also have 24 Oct 2011 @ Al-Manar.com.lb and SANA:
November 3rd, 2011, 12:44 pm
Revlon said:
In compliance with the AL agreement, the regime forces have apparently shifted to killing by strangulation, instead of using arms!
Martyr Khaled Khalifa AlKhalidi was strangulated by Asad forces today.
AlFati7a upon his soul,
May God bless his family with solace and empower them with patience.
18+ 3 11 2011 Deir Baalbeh, Homs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Erqb4KSty8c&feature=player_embedded
أوغاريت حمص حي دير بعلبة الشهيد خالد خليفة الأحمد الخالدي , تم قتله خنقاُ من قبل جيش بشار
18+ 3 11 Homs
القتل خنقاً ,,,, هي الاستراتيجية الجديدة في الغدر والقتل التي بدأ باتباعها النظام تتناسب مع استراتيجية الغدر والمراوغة الجديدة التي يلعب بها مع الجامعة العربية
ثورتنا بالمرصاد أيها المجرمون ,, وسنحاسبكم عن كل قطرة دم أرقتموها من أحرارنا
16 minutes
November 3rd, 2011, 1:00 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
The following was posted here a little over a month ago in a slightly shorter form. It mostly met with silence here at the time.
Free and fair parliamentary elections are going to take place in Syria in all likelihood in 2012 — free and fair except for a ban on religious and tribal parties. Here are twenty factual grounds for expecting the party of the Assad regime to be the clear winner in the elections. The twenty items are listed in no particular order.
(1) Relative to the country’s whole population, the number of individuals who accepted the invitation to join anti-regime demonstrations this year was “small” (hard number unavailable; Bashar Assad has said he accepts an estimate of 150,000 to 200,000 protesters).
(2) The more educated classes did not join the anti-regime demonstrations. Every winning political party in every country needs substantial support from the more educated classes. In Syria right now there is only one party that has such support, Assad’s party. To illustrate, one of the two key reasons why the Muslim Brotherhood party is much stronger in Egypt than in Syria is that it has attracted substantial support in the more educated classes. You know the other key reason. During the past seven months the Syrian educated classes had the opportunity to come out and complain about the latter, and they didn’t take it up.
(3) Most of the religiously conservative classes did not join the anti-regime demonstrations. Neither did the clergy; most of the Sunni clerical leadership went on record as anti-tumult and pro-civil-process. Most of the people who attended the mosque on Friday did not attend an anti-regime demonstration afterwards, not even if a demonstration was conveniently on offer to them at the doorstep. The neighborhoods in Damascus city with a high concentration of religiously conservative people had only small, and few, demonstrations over the seven months. One of the regime’s core constituencies is people who are less religious or who have a more progressive, less doctrinaire, take on religion. So, it is a very big and important achievement that this regime has been able to maintain its support among most of the religiously conservative. Correcting myself, it’s more careful to say “the religious conservatives consented to the rule of the regime and did not rise up against the regime” instead of “the regime has their support…”. Alright, many of them may vote for another party in the elections. But since most of them don’t express alienation against the regime, you shouldn’t expect them to vote en masse against the regime. Furthermore this year’s anti-regime protesters out on the streets have been largely and essentially free of sectarian slogans and sectarian imagery, despite the fact that the great bulk of the protesters have been poorly educated Sunnis. That’s another sign that a quasi-religious or quasi-sectarian Sunni political party would not get broad political support from Sunnis in the elections. Syria’s Sunni Grand Mufti, Ahmad Hassoun, has said that this year’s renewed legal ban on religious political parties is harmless to religion. Not much disagreement about that can be found among Syria’s Sunnis. The Syrian Establishment — and specifically the bulk of the better educated Sunnis — do not want to support sectarian politics; they have consciously opted to support governmental secularism as the best framework for harmony among the sects. The type of Sunnis in Syria with the sort of opinion that could create sectarianism are a disreputable minority without realistic hope of changing the minds of the rest. Intermittent concrete examples of sectarian sentiment keep popping up as popular news stories but they aren’t stories about fundamentals. Looking at fundamentals, the most important fundamental is that the sects are not in disagreement today over any important political policy question, at all. You can’t have sectarian cleavage in the absence of an associated cleavage over one or more important policy questions. Especially not when sectarian parties are banned. (The anti-regime protesters have been disproportionately Sunni as I said, but many and possibly even most of them are avowedly non-sectarian, and meanwhile the great majority of Sunnis have not been anti-regime this year in their observable behaviour).
(4) Once the reforms announced by regime are completed, there will be no major disagreement between regime and the dissidents on the structure of the institutions of the State. On social and economic policies the major disagreements between regime and the dissidents are restricted to sundry wings of the dissidents (such as the MB wing), and not the dissidents as a whole. These various wings are known to have only small and slim political support in Syria. The opposition as a whole does not have a program for change beyond what the Assad regime itself has declared itself in favour of implementing. That is, the anti-regime protests have not created an alternative policy agenda or forward vision that throws the regime on the defensive in the upcoming election.
(5) The demonstrators were predominantly from the poorly educated working class. Most of them did not have an agenda beyond wanting Bashar Al-Assad to leave, and then have elections, and get a breath of fresh air in the country of an unspecified kind. The great majority of the poorly educated working class did not join with them in the anti-regime demonstrations, and all those who did not join are likely to follow the lead of the educated classes in the upcoming elections. The better educated will be creating and propagating most of the discourse of the elections contest.
(6) The various Syrian opposition parties that will be competing in the elections are very weak today, they are only being born, their representatives are barely known or entirely unknown to the Syrian public, they are not attracting much interest today from the more educated classes (nor from the less educated classes), and I can’t see a route by which they can make themselves a whole lot stronger by election day.
(7) The city Al-Bab, 50 kilometers northwest of Aleppo city, is the eight largest city in Syria. The city Al-Safira, 35 kilometers southwest of Aleppo, is the tenth largest in Syria (year 2010). Those two plus Aleppo city (all overwhelmingly Sunni in religion) have had only very small, and only very few, anti-regime demonstrations during this past seven months. Opposition to the regime in that part of the country among the poorly educated working class is tiny. Aleppo province is Syria’s most populous. A general lack of protests — with unimpressive exceptions — was a fact on the ground in the provinces of Damascus City, Latakia, Tartous, Sweida and Raqqa. Those regional strengths on their own can be enough for the regime to win a nationwide majority, even if you’re not yet agreeing with a forecast of the regime winning almost everywhere.
(8) The regime makes it its business to try to be in touch with the pulse of Syrian popular sentiment. It succeeds at that effort when the popular sentiment is pretty obvious. The regime in policymaking is non-doctrinaire, and is responsive to popular sentiment. Needless to say this helps it politically.
(9) The regime’s core agenda, modernization, is supported by almost all.
(10) The attempt to unconstitutionally overthrow the regime has discredited swathes of dissidents in the eyes of many Syrians: It has increased political support for the regime among previously neutral people who strongly desire civil process and no violence.
(11) “Syrians are nationalistic and the Assad regime has got a bone-crunchingly strong grip over how the nation and nationalism is defined. The definition of the nation that the Syrians are nationalistic about is the one developed and nurtured by the regime over decades. It is unchallenged and unchallengeable, and people are rallying around it at this time of stress.” Nationalism sells well in national elections and no challenger can outdo the regime in selling nationalism.
(12) Related to the previous point but distinct from it, a section of Syrians have sentiment today that will be voting next year not so much for Assad’s party as for national unity. A vote against Assad’s party would be a vote for factionalism, discord, and recrimination, which they don’t want.
(13) Under the Political Parties Law, parties with a purely local basis are banned; parties must be either national or making efforts to be national. Under the Elections Law, “elections campaigns should not include any… ethnic or tribal indications”. Taken together those two laws ban Kurdish identity parties and parties based on ancient tribal allegiance. In the absence of those bans those parties might have won a few seats and joined an opposition coalition.
(14) No representatives of agricultural or rural interests have been talking up an alternative to the Assad regime. Right now there exists no voice for the rural vote in competition with the regime’s.
(15) The trade sanctions imposed by the Europeans and Americans have alienated the Syrians, I say, and all winning parties will decry the trade sanctions in the election campaign. The trade sanctions are an attack on the economy and the people of the country at large. In countries around the world people have responded by “rallying around the flag” under comparable circumstances. In Syria, the regime owns that flag. The effect of the sanctions on Syrian spirit can only be to make people more patriotic, more unified, and hugging closer to their country’s established government.
(16) Practically everybody in Syria knows that the anti-regime crowd has been lying about security forces atrocities; and that the regime has been telling the truth. (Foreigners don’t know it, since they don’t watch Syrian TV, but foreigners are irrelevant since they won’t be voting). More generally, the regime has been able to use its control over Syrian mass media especially TV news to strong effect. The State-controlled TV news puts out good quality products for the most part, which enjoy good credibility with the Syrian public, and have good market penetration. Syrians have every reason to believe, and do believe, that the message of the dissidents has been riddled with deceit during this past seven months. The dissidents lost the media war in Syria (though they won it, falsely, in most foreign media markets).
(17) The Trades Unions are pro-regime. The local and national Chambers of Commerce and Industry are pro-regime also. Therefore on debatable issues related to the economy, in the election campaign, we’ll have the captains of industry and commerce, and the heads of the trades unions, and the ministers of the government, all reading out of the same prayer book. Meanwhile the Syrian opposition parties have only slim experience in economic development and none has presented economic policy programs as of yet. So it’s hard to see how the regime’s party could get beaten on economic issues.
(18) Syria is dominated by a sociologically broad Establishment that covers all geographic parts of the country, nearly all religious groups, all age groups, all professional occupations, all big private enterprises, and the State. This Establishment has had only one political party for decades. Today it shows no inclination towards internal divisiveness such as would create two parties within one Establishment (such as many Western countries have or what seems to be forming in Egyptian politics between the more Islamic and the more secular).
(19) As I see it, the parliamentary election campaign will consist of sundry semi-anonymous and semi-disreputable dissident parties campaigning against the Establishment party. With that view, I must expect the Establishment party to win by a very comfortable margin (at least as wide a margin as the Mubarak’s party used to win by in Egypt under somewhat similar circumstances).
(20) This year, the pro-regime pop songs outnumbered the anti-regime pop songs by a factor of roughly twenty to one, and nearly all of the more well-known popular singers who live in Syria have said publicly that they support President Assad and the reforms the Assad regime is introducing.
(21: bonus item) Some opposition parties allege the regime is guilty of corruption. When an opposition party repeatedly says the government is corrupt, this may strengthen the opposition’s public image because it’s implicitly repeating “we are not corrupt ourselves”. However, when the evidence of corruption is disputable, experience in other countries shows that raising corruption allegations ultimately results in failure for the opposition. Corruption means violation of law. If the accusations of the opposition are true, yet haven’t been prosecuted in the courts, the legal system is corrupt as well. It’s hard for a voter to be convinced that the prosecutors and other law enforcement people are not earnestly trying to do their jobs. It is hard to believe the government publicly declares the laws are righteous while secretly violating them, with numbers of government workers involved in coverups, when reliable evidence of the corruption is not available and the people making the accusations have ulterior motives and dubious credibility. The government and its defenders will say the rival party’s accusations are scurrilous falsehoods. Anybody who disseminates scurrilous falsehoods is stupid and untrustworthy if not a liar. Thus a challenger trying to play “the corruption card” against an incumbent is making a bad move because the voters who don’t already believe the incumbent’s personnel are rife with corruption won’t have their minds changed by the electioneering (assuming the evidence of corruption is disputable) and this tends to undermine the perceived trustworthiness of the challenger, not the incumbent; and meanwhile the voters who already do believe the incumbent’s personnel are rife with corruption will be already very disinclined to vote for the incumbent and what they would like to hear are other reasons to vote for the challenger.
(22: bonus item) Back in August 2007 Syria had municipal or local council elections. A coalition of dissident parties called for a boycott of the elections. How effective was the call to boycott? Answer in two parts: (1) 32058 candidates contested 9687 local council seats. (2) The official voter turnout was 50 percent (compared to 38 percent in the 2003 elections). In most other countries a 50 percent turnout is high for local council elections. In April 2007 Syria had national parliamentary elections. The dissidents called for a boycott. How did that boycott go? (1) The number of entrants to the contest at the deadline for applications was 9770, of whom 2293 were approved to enter the contest, and all those entrants were competing over just 250 seats in parliament. (2) The official turnout was 56 percent. (I’ve taken the numbers from ref and ref which are in turn citing the government’s official source). In May 2007 Syria had a national referendum on whether to renew Bashar Assad as president for a second seven-year term. A coalition of dissidents called for a boycott. The official government figure for the turnout for that referendum is an absolutely spectacular figure that’s hard to believe because it’s so very high: 95 percent of the eligible voters turned out to the polling booths to vote, and 98 percent of these voted “Yes”. Ref. Essentially all adults were eligible voters. The counting of the votes is done by the government. Some dissidents claim that the results in all those elections were grossly corrupt and false. But they have no way to show why the accusation deserves to be given any credence. In the years since 2007 Bashar has not done anything notably unpopular. Therefore, unless you refuse to believe the result in 2007, you are compelled to assume he remains very popular. In particular, the various facts of this year’s Events do not provide a basis from which to throw doubt on the correctness of the assumption that Bashar is very popular. In view of the dissidents’ accusations of improper vote counting, it is worth noting that under the new Elections Law enacted in 2011, representatives of each candidate have the power to oversee the vote counting in their district; and allegations of improper counting are to be referred to panels of law judges, which have been specially created in each province to supervise and oversee the elections. The new law has transferred the supervision of the elections from the executive government to members of the judiciary.
November 3rd, 2011, 1:01 pm
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
ABSENT INCITEMENT
MONTAGNARD @ 83.
Read comment 80 again, where do I say Syria laid mines? My comment takes a disgusted swipe at an intellectually bankrupt person who wrote the cut and paste article. Read that quote again, “Perhaps it is, who knows? If so, a way to discourage, might be to put out a hand of friendship.” because there are only few explanation for what that woman said.
1. She believes that the regime is capable of laying mines and she felt compelled to sanitize this action in case her suspicions turned out right, which qualifies her as intellectually and morally bankrupt and disingenuous, especially that her article berates the violence of NATO.
2. She has no clue what she is writing about, which also makes her dishonest and stupid, who simply mentally dumps her stupidity with the same ease others take physical dumps.
There is nothing in my post but a great detestation and disgust for the writer and her writing. There is no news values in it for I am not making a judgement whether the accusation is true. It is Betho’s friends on the misguided global conspiracy theory outfit who are doing him harm, they are the ones convinced that he is a criminal in need of defense. A criminal capable of laying mines.
With friends like that, anyone can use an honest enemy
November 3rd, 2011, 1:10 pm
Revlon said:
In order to full a gap in preparedness of the AL inspection team, The Revolution activists in Homs are providing the team with a Google map of the city, which also highlights the locations of all of the still manned and active armed regime checkpoints in the city, and that have caused at least 20 deaths today.
http://www.communitywalk.com/homs
The Syrian Revolution 2011 الثورة السورية ضد بشار الاسد
خريطة حواجز حمص المحتلة
——————————
نظرا لما يبدو بأن الجامعة العربية غير مستعدة لوجستيا لمراقبة الوضع في سوريا والذي استغله النظام حتى اللحظة بقتل 20 شهيدا اليوم فإن ثوار حمص يقدمون هذه الخريطة لوفود المراقبة في الجامعة العربية المفترض أن تكون وصلت إلى دمشق.
هذه الخريطة توضح تموضع الحواجز الامنية و العسكرية التي تقوم بقتل الأبرياء وتهدم بيوتهم والتي يقطع بها جيش الاحتلال الأسدي أوصال حمص المحتلة.
حواجز حمص المحتلة – CommunityWalk
http://www.communitywalk.com.
about an hour ago
November 3rd, 2011, 1:10 pm
5 dancing shlomos said:
we are the zionized west. we are the zionist agencies of the zionized west. we can lie all we want and our lies are our truth.
Syria: Amnesty International, Regime Change and an Ambassador
by Felicity Arbuthnot / November 3rd, 2011
http://dissidentvoice.org/2011/11/syria-amnesty-international-regime-change-and-an-ambassador/#more-38947
Absolutism, tempered by assassination.
— Ernst Munster, 1766-1839
Oh, well! Time to move on, folks. Nothing to see here. Now there is an oil man, who spent many years in the United States, shoed in as “interim Prime Minister” in Libya. It’s time to go a-toppling again.
Don’t mention the dead, distraught, destroyed, the mass graves and mass murders by NATO and their ethnic cleansers at ground level, tutored by their Special Services. There’s oil to pump, rebuilding contracts to be divvied out, a bit of looting – and near certainly no accounting for all of Libya’s frozen assets, being minimally returned in dribs and drabs. Remember Iraq’s missing billions? Another day, another precedent, another grand theft.
And that well worn propaganda hand book, battered, dog eared, but trusty, is back.
It has, in fact, been leafed back to over twenty years ago — to August 1990, to be exact. Then Kuwaiti babies had been torn from their incubators, thrown to the hospital floor and left to die by Iraqi soldiers, said a “nurse” claiming to work in Kuwait – backed by Amnesty International. It was entirely untrue, but it was arguably the tipping point, justification for the coming 42 day bombardment and the first ruination of Iraq, which was “Operation Desert Storm.” 1
In August of this year, it was alleged that babies in Syria were left to die in their incubators after President Bashar al-Assad had the electricity turned off. Pictures showed pathetic little souls, inexplicably blood smeared – and huddled.
However, some meticulous digging by Ali Abunima throws up many questions. Certainly the doctored picture was earlier in an Egyptian publication, showing overcrowded conditions in the country’s paediatric units – the babies in that one were pink and healthy, nevertheless.
As the fog of disinformation again obscures much, it is worth remembering that President Assad trained as a doctor, worked as one for some years, then did further post-graduate training, qualifying as an opthamologist at London’s prestigious St Mary’s Teaching Hospital group. He had planned medicine as a career, which was cut short when his brother, Bassel, designated his father’s heir, was killed in a car crash in Damascus in 1994.
Accusations of targeting babies towards a man who had devoted years to studying medicine should surely at least be questioned. Further, in an atmosphere of unrest, it would hardly win over the dissenters.
On October 25, Amnesty produced a 36 page Report largely taken from media outlets and non-attributed videos, “documenting” gruesome abuses in Syria’s hospitals, including a variation on babies ripped from incubators, “… at least one unconscious patient having his ventilator removed …”before being taken away, an unnamed “health worker” had said.
Four days after the Report was published Amnesty had organized a demonstration in London: “No more Blood – No more Fear”, which rallied outside the Syrian Embassy.
Chris Doyle, Director of the Council for Arab British Understanding told demonstrators that “Even donkeys have become targets of the Syrian army” and that water had been cut off because the government claimed it had been polluted by halucigens. The cynic might think that had all the validity of claims Colonel Quaddafi gave Viagra to his troops — and Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.
However, Doyle shone one light, demanding that “human rights organizations” be allowed into the country. If they have relied on second hand sources for their Report, has it any more validity than Kuwait’s incubator babies?
Franklin Lamb thinks not and has produced a detailed piece as to why, from seemingly unrestricted, recent, first hand experience in Syrian hospitals. He also has telephone numbers of medical practitioners wishing to invite Amnesty researchers to see for themselves.
Syria, it seems, is in the regime change frame. Today, it has been revealed by a “a senior diplomat … and a former UN investigator”, who, of course, “both spoke on condition of anonymity”, that Syria has a previously unknown nuclear power plant.
“Suspicions” are that Syria worked with Abdul Qadeer Khan, “father of Pakistan’s atomic bomb, to acquire nuclear weapons technology.”
The buildings “closely” resemble those of Libya’s when they were trying to build nuclear weapons. However, before you head for the fall-out shelter or reach for a 2,000 lb. bunker buster:
The complex, in the city of Hasakah, now appears to be a cotton-spinning plant, and investigators have found no sign it was ever used for nuclear production.
Israel, of course, bombed a “suspected” nuclear plant in 2007, legality, as ever, redundant.
Syria is also currently being accused of laying mines along the Lebanese border to prevent insurgents crossing it. Perhaps it is, who knows? If so, a way to discourage might be to put out a hand of friendship. If threatened sufficiently, most might resort to protective measures.
It is surely coincidence that the unrest and the focus on Syria began shortly after the arrival of the first US Ambassador to the country since 2005.
Ambassador Robert Ford, arrived in Damascus on January 16 this year. By January 31, there was a call for a “Day of Rage” on February 4. As Michel Chossudovsy has pointed out the Ambassador has an interesting CV — diplomacy possibly not being one of his towering strengths. He is currently temporarily withdrawn, having been pelted with tomatoes.
Syria has been under embargo since 2004. The US has frozen all the country’s assets. Yet Syria opened its borders to two million Iraqi refugees after the 2003 invasion, with no recompense. Libya had one hundred thousand. The displaced keep fleeing and dying, the region lives in constant fear as to who is the next target.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International Director Kate Allen, cites Syrian diplomats as representatives of “repression and injustice.”
Perhaps we need to look a little closer to our Western home for that.
Incidentally, October 31, the day Libya was declared liberated and NATO’s “mission” over, was the anniversary of the US, UK and France’s bombing of Egypt in 1956 to force the re-opening of the Suez Canal. On the same day in 1968, Lyndon B. Johnson announced the cessation of the bombardment of North Vietnam.
Unending decades of lies dressed as liberation and asset grabs as tyrants who terrorize.
the “suspected” nuclear plant bombed in 2007 by the crazed, lying people was a concrete bldg housing pigeons.
pigeons are an existential threat to the diseased minds.
November 3rd, 2011, 1:15 pm
louai said:
@127 revlon
this map made to guide the terrorists how to smuggle arms ,the check points are labled according to the security checks level (read comments on the left down of the page) the map also show he security branches in the city !!!
i find it interesting to publish this map ! or the revlotionries really think Homs is ‘occupied’
November 3rd, 2011, 1:18 pm
5 dancing shlomos said:
from angry arab:
Thursday, November 03, 2011
Attack on `Alawites in Syria
Look at this article on Syria in the New York Times. It basically follows the pattern of coverage: the New York Times has decided they won’t include reactions by Syrian government or their supporters. One wishes they do that when they cover Israeli crimes, just as when they ignore Syrian government statements when it comes to Syrian regime crimes. They correspondents manage to speak to supporters of the pro-Saudi elements of the Syrian opposition throughout the region, and yet not one voice to question or verify claims. Look at the way they covered the torture and murder of 11 `Alawites near Homs. Of course, this is not novel as there have been reports of attacks on `Alawites and even of marking houses in which `Alawites reside. Many `Alawites have to move from their neighborhoods including in Rif Dimashq, or Duma and Hrista. It is now very easy for any supporter of the Syrian Ikhwan council to dismiss a person as mukhabrat or shabbihah (thugs or armed goons of the regime) to justify his murder and the expulsion of his family from the neighborhood. This is even happening in cyber space: if you don’t support the Syrian National Council you are called a supporter of Bashshar and the crimes of the Syrian regime. But the attack on `Alawites is part of the traditions of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhoods: they did that in the late 1970s in Syria. It is not new but Western or Arab media won’t cover that because all `Alawites are dismissed as criminals or as goons of the regime. There is not one article written about the religious bigotry against all `Alawite that is being generated by Saudi channels (and such expressions against `Alawites is of course welcome on Aljazeera now). In the New York Times it says: “There were reports that those killed belonged to the minority Alawite sect, and the killing of the factory workers was to avenge their deaths. But antigovernment activists said that among those dragged from the bus and killed were at least one Sunni Muslim and two Christians, in addition to Alawites.” So you can simply dismiss the murder of innocent `Alawites by citing the authority of an unknown person who claimed without evidence that not all are `Alawites, and that two were Christians. But we never claimed that the Ikhwan were not bigots against Christians, Mr./Ms.
November 3rd, 2011, 1:19 pm
Revlon said:
Demonstrators raise the Revolution (Independence) Flag on the municipality of Mare3 town, Aleppo Governorate!
They chant in defiance:
7andooshom, 7andooshom
Beit-AlAssad 7andooshom
We shall stomp
We shall stomp
All Asads, we shall stomp
حلب – مارع||رفع علم الاستقلال فوق البلدية 2-11-2011 جـ2
November 3rd, 2011, 1:28 pm
jad said:
Dear Louai, SNK
I doubt that the army will leave Homs any time soon, they can’t even if they want to, many Homsi won’t let them do that because the alternative is a full scale civil war where civilians will start to take arms and defend themselves against the terrorist gangs from any side, which will take the situation into a whole different hell than it is right now and that what the radicals want.
I really don’t know how things will end in Homs, my only hope is that the majority of Homsi to realize that this struggle is not about Assad anymore, he doesn’t deserve this much blood to be spell for, it’s against Syria the homeland in everything it represent, it’s against Syrians to force them to give up their Syrianism for Beduinism, Radicalism and Sectarianism, the political system is gone sooner or later it doesn’t matter, but what we will be left with, if we loose our Syrianism, is nothing, this war is against everything Syrians stands for and has nothing to do with our political system, a quick check on all those countries who are asking us to become ‘Switzerland’ in one day, they are behind Syria on many levels even politically they are not where they are asking us to be, heck, most of them don’t even have a constitution.
The news of destruction, killing, kidnapping, blood is what they want Syrians to hear every day and to be busy with, just, to brake them, hopefully the Syrian society won’t fell for that and we will win as a society and we will change our political system the way that protect and keep our Syrianism.
November 3rd, 2011, 1:32 pm
HonorableSyrian said:
The only deal we Syrians want is the one in which Bashar Al-Assad’s head will be put on a pike in the center of Ummayad Square. We asked for reform and we took to the streets for peaceful dialogue; Assad’s regime responded with bullets and bombs and the torture and mutilation of women and children.
Since violence is the only language Assad wants to speak, we will reply in this language with fluency, eloquence, and prose.
Bashar Al-Assad will be executed. Maher Al-Assad will be executed. They will not be permitted to leave. There is no safe haven for any of them; their actions have closed that door forever. Those figures from the regime that do attempt to run will have no place to hide.
Every piece of the Assad regime, every lackey, and every hired gun will be hunted to the ends of the Earth like the Nazi war criminals of WW2. Their families and offspring will be shamed and their stolen-wealth will be rightfully distributed to the poor. The Assads and their shabiha thugs will live for generations as bare-footed peasants, and their greatest career aspirations will be to become a housekeeper for a lower-middle-class family in Homs.
And when Bashar Al-Assad’s soul is pulled from his body, like a needle through wet cotton, he will scream in agony knowing that it will not end there. It will only get worse. He has an eternity to look forward to in the deepest fires of hell.
So Bashar, the only thing we have to talk about is this: Which direction would you like your head mounted? North? South? East? Or West?
November 3rd, 2011, 1:40 pm
Revlon said:
129. Dear louai,
The link shows resourcefullness and high organisational and reconnaissance gathering skills.
In future, SC sponsored air strikes can capitalize on the skills of the revolution activists; They are capable of providing accurate coordinates for pinpoint strikes!
November 3rd, 2011, 1:44 pm
Revlon said:
Activists have printed death annoncement flyers for Asad and his entourage, to be posted in Rukneddin, Damascus!
اطفال حي ركن الدين يشاركون في إلصاق نعوات بشار 3-11-22011
November 3rd, 2011, 1:54 pm
jad said:
شلقم يشن هجوم عنيف على قطر ودورها : ليبيا لن تكون إمارة تابعة لأمير المؤمنين في قطر
شلقم يتهم قطر بأنها مصابة بجنون عظمة مثلها مثل القذافي
الجيش القطري عبارة عن “مرتزقة”…
===============================================
اتهم وزير خارجية ليبيا السابق وسفيرها الحالي في الأمم المتحدة عبدالرحمن شلقم قطر بأنها تسير على نفس الطريق الذي سلكه معمر القذافي من جنون العظمة فتتوهم انها تقود المنطقة وانها تعمل على تشكيل حزب إسلامي يشبه حزب الله في ليبيا.
وقال شلقم في برنامج “مع الحدث” الذي يبث عبر التلفزيون الالماني القسم العربي “دويتش فيله” ان قطر تريد الهيمنة على ليبيا وان رئيس المجلس الانتقالي الليبي والوفد الليبي الذي زار قطر مؤخرا قبلوا ما أملي عليهم في الدوحة دون ان يكون لديهم خبرة سياسية ومعرفة بخلفيات الامور.
واضاف شلقم ان وفد المجلس الانتقالي الليبي قبل بأمور فرضت عليهم من قطر يرفضها معظم الليبيين وانهم – اي قطر وحلفائها – اذا استمروا في اتجاه الهيمنة على ليبيا فهم واهمون ولن يقبل الليبيين بذلك بل ستتم مقاومتهم بكل الطرق.
وقال شلقم “لن تكون ليبيا إمارة تابعة لأمير المؤمنين في قطر”.
واتهم عبد الرحمن شلقم دولة قطر بعدم الوقوف على مسافة واحدة من كل الأطراف في ليبيا، واعرب عن رفضه ان تتولى قطر قيادة التحالف الدولي للقوات في ليبيا، حيث وصف جيشها بأنه عبارة عن “مرتزقة”.
ووصف شلقم عملية جمع السلاح في ليبيا بأنه خدعة حيث ان المجموعة المكلفة بجمع السلاح باشراف قطري ستقوم بجمع السلاح وتعطيه لآخرين.
وقال شلقم ان ليبيا ليست في حاجة لأموال قطر. وان من قام بالدور المهم على الأرض هو القوات الفرنسية والأميركية والبريطانية وليس القطرية.
وسخر شلقم من ان القطريين سيديرون تنمية ليبيا حيث قال ان الخبراء الذين يديرون النفط والبنوك في قطر هم ليبيون، وان قطر لا تتميز عن ليبيا لكي تأتي وتعمل غرفة عمليات في ليبيا.
وعبر شلقم عن رفضه لذلك وقال “هذا مرفوض، قطر كلها لا تساوي حارة في ليبيا. والخبراء الليبيون هم الذين يقودون قطر ولسنا في حاجة لقطر في أي شيء شكرا لهم، فليتركوننا نقرر مصيرنا بأنفسنا. نحن لا نعتبرهم محايدين. نحن لا نريد قطر ولا أميركا”.
وعبر شلقم عن عدم فهمه للتحالف الذي تقوده قطر قائلا “أنا لا أفهمه، ولا أقبله وغير معروف حتى لليبيين.
قطر تقود أميركا وتقود فرنسا، من هي قطر، أليس جيشها من مرتزقة من نيبال ومن بنغلاديش وباكستان؟ ما هي قدرة قطر. أخاف أن تصاب قطر بما أصيب به معمر القذافي من جنون العظمة، فتتوهم أنها تقود المنطقة. أنا لا أقبل ذلك. عدد الشهداء الليبيين والجرحى يفوق عدد سكان قطر.”
واتهم السفير الليبي في الامم المتحدة قطر بتشكيل حزب إسلامي موال لها على غرار حزب الله في لبنان.
من جانب أخر تشير تقارير في طرابلس حصلت عليه ميدل ايست اونلاين الى تهديد العديد من المجموعات المرتبطة بقبائل ليبية بأنها لن تسمح بتواجد لمجموعات قطرية في المنطقة وانها ترفض التدخل القطري وستواجهه بالعنف.
وتجاوبا مع هذه التهديدات قام قائد المجلس العسكري في طرابلس والمتحالف مع قطر بزيارات لوجهاء في المنطقة لتهدئة غضبهم وكسبهم الى صفوف مجلسه والتخفيف من التوتر بينهم وبين التواجد القطري على الاراضي الليبية.
” ميدل ايست اونلاين “
November 3rd, 2011, 1:54 pm
SYR.EXPAT said:
So far, the terrorists running the Syrian government and the Syrian army have not started pulling the troops out of some of the hots spots. Let’s see if this will change in the next few days.
November 3rd, 2011, 1:58 pm
Revlon said:
Fleeting demonstration in Qanawat (Old city), Damascus today chanting:
Asha3b, Yurid, I3damarra2ees (The peoople want to down the system)
Ir7al bashar (Hey Basahr Go Away)
Mafi 7iwar (We do not want to have a dialogue)
03/11/2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpg7wkPLPc0&feature=player_embedded
November 3rd, 2011, 2:01 pm
atassi said:
Syrian Nationalist Party
Kuss Aoumack and Kussssssssssss Amo La bashar too..
Homs will triumph in the end for sure, Your God Bashar is looking for new place to screw- up !! maybe will make him the Mayer of Qurdah since they love him so much..
Atassi’s are your Masters as you know ….!
November 3rd, 2011, 2:04 pm
Revlon said:
List of names of 16 martyrs that have fallen today, since the regime announced their agreement with the terms of the AL initiative, less than 24 hours ago!
AlFati7a upon their souls,
May God bless their families with solace and empower them with patience.
The Syrian Revolution 2011 الثورة السورية ضد بشار الاسد
أسماء 16 شهيدا في حمص اليوم الخميس 3-11-2011 بعد أقل من 24 ساعة على موافقة النظام السوري المجرم على الخطة العربية أمس
—————————————————————–
سامي احسان نصر النازحين
عبد الكريم الدرويش بابا عمرو
ابراهيم الغنطاوي بابا عمرو
الطفل محمد مسلماني. بابا عمرو
زيد الخال بابا عمرو
نافذ بكار بابا عمرو
الشهيد سمير محمد كشكش كرم الزيتون
لشهيدة ناديا دعبول كرم الزيتون
خالد الأحمد الخالدي دير بعلبة
زكريا وليد الإبراهيم تل الشور
ابراهيم وليد الإبراهيم تل الشور
رامز أحمد الإبراهيم تل الشور
محمد الحداد الخالدية
محمد قنبازو الخالدية
محمد جمال الحوري الخالدية
وليد الاطرش البياضة
2 hours ago
November 3rd, 2011, 2:09 pm
Revlon said:
A commendable leadership gesture from SNC executive office; They visited and chatted with acitivists who were carrying a sit in across from the AL.
Ugarit News | أوغاريت الإخبارية
أوغاريت || وفد من المكتب التنفيذي للمجلس الوطني يزور خيمة الاعتصام أمام مقر الجامعة العربية في القاهرة
قام وفد ضم ستة من المكتب التنفيذي للمجلس الوطني إضافة إلى أمين سر الأمانة العامة بزيارة خيمة الاعتصام التي نفذها شبان سوريون وعرب أمام مقر جامعة الدول العربية للمطالبة بعزل النظام وتجميد عضويته، وقد التقى الوفد عدداً من المعتصمين حيث تبادل معهم الحديث حول التطورات في سورية وأجاب عن أسئلتهم واستفساراتهم، وقدم لهم شرحا حول برامج عمل المجلس الوطني والمكاتب التي تم إنشاؤها، ولقيت الزيارة ترحيبا كبيرا وتأكيداً من قبل المعتصمين على الالتفاف الشعبي حول المجلس الوطني بصفته ممثلا للشعب والثورة في سورية.
14 minutes ago
November 3rd, 2011, 2:18 pm
Revlon said:
Defecting army members annonce the formation of a new phalange today, in the Western coutry-side of Damascus; AlFarouq.
The announcement came after the non-compliance of the regime with the AL that they already approved.
We abstain fro annoncing our names for security reasons.
أوغاريت تشكيل كتيبة الفاروق في ريف دمشق الغربي 3 11 2011
November 3rd, 2011, 2:25 pm
Amir in Tel Aviv said:
Dear Revlon,
Your posting is priceless! Thank you and please keep it coming!
.
November 3rd, 2011, 2:27 pm
Amir in Tel Aviv said:
Just watched “inside story” on English AJ. The junta sent this oldster dinosaur, George Jabour I believe his name is, to represent them. What a pathetic old man. His false teeth almost fell of his mouth while he was trying to defend the junta.
.
November 3rd, 2011, 2:34 pm
Revlon said:
Asad army and security forces enter Saqba unhindered and arrest scores of activists!
03/11/2011
أموي مباشر – Omawi Live
أموي مباشر سوريا #syria •◄ عاجل – سقبا – ريف دمشق : اقتحمت اكثر من 15 سيارة زيل عسكرية وعدد من سـْـْيارات الامن والشبيحة مدينة سقبا واعتقالات بالعشرات الان
4 hours ago
November 3rd, 2011, 2:36 pm
Syria no kandahar said:
Revlon
You have been تقتل الميت وتمشي في جنازته
From day one.you have been exposed.The next dead one will be your evil terrorist destructive Islamic extremist revolution.get your Fatiha to read on it,befor you send it to hell.
November 3rd, 2011, 2:41 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
It is obvious the Mossad backed and paid for terrorists here are getting desperate, their language and threat is telling. But who cares, they are losers, weak and cowards, like their family, they have no dignity or honor. They have no followers, I mean none, no follower whatsoever, and have zero chance at ruling a toilet bowl, let alone at messing in Syria. Keep on barking weak and helpless idiots. Bark louder, maybe in another 8 months a dog at the U.N. will hear your animalistic suffering and give you a shitty bone out on animal suffering compassion.
November 3rd, 2011, 2:49 pm
Revlon said:
Mr Murhaf Jwaijati, lecturer at a US university and Mr. Nibras AlFadel have resinged as Advisors to B Asad and joined the SNC and the opposition respectively.
Also, Mr Omar Al3azm, advisor to Asmaa have resinged and joined the opposition.
Mr Al3azm pledged to help all university students that who were expelled from Syrian unveristies due to ther revolution activism to be offered scolarships in US universities.
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/34786
2011/11/03نشر فى: غير مصنف
مستشار ثان لبشارالاسد وآخر لاسماء ينضمان للمعارضة
مراسل المحليات : كلنا شركاء
انضم الدكتور مرهف جويجاتي المحاضر في عدد من اهم الجامعات الامريكية لصفوف المعارضة السورية من خلال المجلس الوطني .
والدكتور جويجاتي هو ابن احد اشهر الديبلوماسيين السوريين رفيق جويجاتي , وكان مستشارا لبشار الاسد كما ذكر في مقالات له بخصوص مفاوضات السلام مع اسرائيل حيث تراس عدد من جلسات الحوار خلال السنين السابقة .
وبهذا ينضم للدكتور نبراس الفاضل المستشار الاقتصادي لبشار الاسد والذي انضم ايضا لصفوف المعارضة .
ومن ناحية اخرى انضم ايضا للمعارضة الدكتور عمر العظم ابن الفيلسوف جلال صادق العظم والذي عمل ضمن فريق متخصص انشأته السيدة اسماء الاسد من اجل تطوير واعادة هيكلة كل البنى الحكومية في سوريا .
وكان السيد عمر العظم قد كتب على صفحته على الفيس بوك : لمن تم فصله من طلبة جامعاتنا السورية .. بسبب نشاطهم الوطني الحر وايمانهم بالحرية
من الباحث عمر العظم .. ” أنا استاذ جامعي في أمريكا و نحن مستعدون لمساعدة أي طالب تم فصله من جامعة سورية بسبب مشاركته بالمظاهرات بتأمين
قبولهم في جامعات أمريكية أو أوروبية مع تغطية التكاليف حتى التخرج
November 3rd, 2011, 2:50 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: SYRIA NO KHANDAHAR-DEE-HAR-HAR
RE: “…before you send it to hell…”
Get a clue, you pathetic little ditz. We are already in hell, thanks to your big daddy, Besho Pencilneck.
But not to worry. The storm always precedes the calm. And after Bashar the Czar is dead and the Assad Mafia rats have drowned in the sinking ship of state, all will be well. It’s just a matter of time.
Poor Besho. He’s a dead man walking. And the sad fact is, he’s the only man in the world who doesn’t know it…
http://viarecta.blogspot.com/2011/10/king-of-all-african-kings-is-hunted.html
November 3rd, 2011, 2:54 pm
Mina said:
Jad 135
How would you spell the name of this Libyan official in English? Can’t find it on the Deutsche Welle website.
and the link you gave for the 1st part of Heykal interview on al Jazeera has been “removed by user”, would you have a permanent link or the name of the interviewer (i can probably find his name by checking their programmes, though).
November 3rd, 2011, 2:57 pm
zoo said:
The military in Egypt are copying the Turkish model whereby the army guaranteed the constitution from 1961 to 2001.
New outcry erupts in Egypt against military rulers
http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=27181
CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s military rulers have triggered a new public outcry with a proposal that critics see as an attempt to enshrine a supreme political role for themselves in the new constitution.
The furor is over a new government-sponsored proposal of overarching principles that would guide the drafting of a new constitution. The proposal only requires adoption by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces to make it binding.{…}
THIS IS THE TURKISH MODEL
‘Turkey’s Military Is a Catalyst for Reform
The Military in Politics
http://www.meforum.org/2160/turkey-military-catalyst-for-reform
“Analysts generally consider military influence in politics and society to be a critical impediment to the development of democratic political and civil rights and freedoms. According to Freedom House, for example, greater military involvement in government politics decreases civil liberties and political rights in any given country; this infringes on a government’s ability to develop democracy.[1]
In 1826, Sultan Mahmud II broke the power of the sultan’s guards, the Janissaries, enabling him to reform the military and begin Westernization of the empire.
Turkey may be an exception. The military has deep roots in society, and its influence predates the founding of the republic. But rather than hinder democratization, Turkey’s military remains an important component in the checks and balances that protect Turkish democracy. Herein lies an irony: European officials have made diminishment of military influence a key reform in Turkey’s European Union accession process. This may be a noble goal, but by insisting on dismantling the military role in Turkish society without advancing a new mechanism to guarantee the constitution, well-meaning reformers may actually undercut the stability of Turkey as a democracy.
From Turkey’s founding, the military assumed responsibility for guaranteeing the republic’s constitution. Article 35 of the Turkish Armed Service Internal Service Code of 1961 declared that the “duty of the armed forces is to protect and safeguard Turkish territory and the Turkish Republic as stipulated by the constitution.”[…}
November 3rd, 2011, 3:00 pm
Tara said:
Syrian forces kill 10 in Homs, day after Arab dealKhaled Yacoub Oweis, Reuters
November 4, 2011,
http://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/-/world/11329384/syrian-forces-kill-10-in-homs-day-after-arab-deal/
AMMAN (Reuters) – Syrian security forces killed 10 people in Homs on Thursday, activists said, and there was no sign yet of troops leaving cities under an Arab League agreement to end bloodshed after seven months of protests against President Bashar al-Assad.
Syria, under mounting pressure to halt a crackdown that the United Nations says has killed over 3,000 people, agreed on Wednesday to an Arab League plan to pull the army out of cities, free political prisoners and hold talks with the opposition.
The authorities blame the violence on Islamist militants and armed gangs who they say have killed 1,100 soldiers and police.
Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby briefed members of the main opposition National Council on the plan in Cairo.
“We did not talk with the secretary-general about a dialogue with the regime,” council member Samir Nashar was quoted by Egypt’s MENA news agency as saying after the meeting.
“We discussed entering negotiations with the authorities to move from a totalitarian to a democratic system, and demanded that President Assad leaves power,” he said.
Assad’s critics have dismissed his past offers of dialogue, with some saying bloodshed must stop first and others saying that only his resignation can end the conflict.
Paris-based Burhan Ghalioun, a leading National Council member, questioned whether Syria would implement the plan.
“The regime has accepted the Arab initiative out of fear of Arab isolation, its weakness and lack of options. But its acceptance does not mean it will respect its clauses,” he wrote.
In Syria, some demonstrators celebrated the Arab League initiative, but residents and activists said troops remained in cities and security operations continued, especially in Homs.
Tanks fired heavy machineguns and anti-aircraft guns in that city’s Bab Amro district, a hotbed of protests and scene of operations by the military against insurgents hiding there.
Activists said at least 10 civilians had been killed in the bombardment of Bab Amro and in violence elsewhere in Homs, a central Syrian city of one million, where army snipers were shooting from rooftops and soldiers fired from checkpoints.
“We slept late because there were overnight street rallies celebrating the Arab initiative. This morning we woke up to rain and shelling,” Samer, an activist in Bab Amro, said by phone.
EXPLOSIONS ROCK CITY
Another resident said the sound of explosions was rocking the city, and activists were calling on people to donate blood for makeshift hospitals in and around the center of Homs.
Activists and residents reported army reinforcements at roadblocks in towns across the southern Hauran Plain, where troops fired in the air to disperse overnight protests.
Early in the morning, an armored column fired machineguns in the air after entering al-Madiq castle near the Roman ruins of Apamea in the Ghab Plain, which has seen protests and has emerged as a refuge for army defectors, local activists said.
In the Damascus suburb of Harasta, at least 120 protesters were arrested overnight after celebrating the Arab League deal, a resident said.
Tough Syrian media restrictions have made it hard to verify events on the ground since an uprising against Assad began in March, inspired by other revolts in the Arab world.
The Arab plan calls for Syria to allow journalists, as well as Arab League monitors, into the country.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said on Wednesday it was pressing Syria for wider access to thousands of detainees arrested in pro-democracy protests.
Western sanctions and growing criticism from Turkey and Arab neighbors have raised pressure on Syria to end the bloodshed.
“We are happy to have reached this agreement and we will be even happier when it is implemented immediately,” said Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani of Qatar, which leads an Arab League committee behind the plan agreed in Cairo.
China, which along with Russia, has resisted imposing U.N sanctions on Syria, welcomed the Arab League plan.
“We believe this marks an important step toward easing the situation in Syria and the early launching of an inclusive political process with broad participation from all parties in Syria,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said.
Despite the latest violence, Sami Baroudi, a political analyst at the Lebanese American University in Beirut, said it was too early to judge whether Syria would honor the agreement.
“It will take at least a couple of days to see whether the intensity of violence is going down or up, or staying at the same level,” Baroudi said. “I wouldn’t throw this initiative into the waste basket because nothing happened immediately.”
After the deal was announced in Cairo, the United States reiterated its call for the Syrian president to quit.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:02 pm
bronco said:
SNC says blunt NO to Arab league.
Arab League chief meets Syria opposition group
Thursday, November 3, 2011
CAIRO – Agence France-Presse
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=arab-league-chief-met-syria-opposition-group-2011-11-03
Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi met Syrian opposition figures Thursday, a day after Damascus agreed to open talks with dissidents, a member of the Syrian National Council said.
Arabi “briefed us on the details of the Arab League initiative and its goals … aimed at finding an Arab solution to the Syrian crisis based on the need to stop the bloodshed in Syria,” said Samir al-Nashar, a member of the executive bureau of the SNC.
Damascus pledged on Wednesday to withdraw its forces from protest centres and engage in a dialogue with the opposition under an Arab League plan to end the bloodshed.
The SNC, the largest and most representative Syrian opposition grouping, on Wednesday urged the Arab League to freeze Syria’s membership in the Arab League and recognise it as the sole representative of the Syrian opposition.
Asked if the SNC agrees to engage in talks with the Syrian regime, Nashar said: “No.
“We are not talking about a dialogue. We offered to engage in negotiations to move from a authoritarian regime to a democratic regime. And we ask that Bashar al-Assad resign.
“We told the secretary general of our fears that the regime will not keep its promises,” Nashar added.
Asked if Syria gave guarantees concerning the implementation of the peace plan, Nashar said Arabi informed the delegation that an Arab ministerial task force will follow up on the implementation of the roadmap.
Meanwhile, an Arab diplomat said the ministerial task force is expected to visit Syria soon to follow up on the implementation of the agreement.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:02 pm
bronco said:
Tara #151
“In Syria, some demonstrators celebrated the Arab League initiative,”
“Some” is hundred of thousands all over Syria…
The usual distorsions of jordanian sectarian Khaled Oweiss
November 3rd, 2011, 3:06 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
@ JARBOU ATTASSI
Homs already had a historic triumph, when they kicked the Atassi’s ass out of Homs and Syria and brought in Hafez Assad, bless his soul for locking them up for life. Then to make sure no Attassi ever rule them, they elected Bashar Assad for life, and Homsi promised that Hafez Jr. will take over for another 80 years thereafter. So Syria future is insured and in good hands. Go shine shoes for living. WTF you gonna do about it? Drag more innocent women out of mini bus and axe them to death? It is only a matter of time before Bashar had a field day showcasing Homs and your atrocities to the world before he move his hundreds of Helios and 10,000 Russian trained Syrian army special forces sharp shooter to finish you thug off once for all. It is already agreed to it, part of the deal you idiot, you still not seeing it. You are being used in a way, for ways, to bring your own gloriously celebrated demise. Homs will be cleaned of your filth soon. Keep on massacring innocent moron.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:13 pm
jad said:
Hi Mina,
Abdel Rahman Shalgam
This is the program on TV in Arabic:
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/episode/9799/0,,15450643,00.html
I don’t have the interview of Haykal with Kreshan handy at the moment, sorry.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:21 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: MINA
RE: “…Jad, How would you spell the name of this Libyan official in English? Can’t find it on the Deutsche Welle website. and the link you gave for the 1st part of Heykal interview on al Jazeera has been “removed by user”,
Don’t count on Jaddie to help you on that, Mina. His links suck. And he’s not all that great at writing prose. He’s from the ANN “CUT & PASTE” SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM. Jaddie, like Spammy Annie, is only good at posting OTHER PEOPLE’S ARTICLES.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:22 pm
Mina said:
Thanks Jad,
Not sure if it’s the … flashplugin but can’t open the video yet. The Germans are usually… more professional, isn’t it?
November 3rd, 2011, 3:31 pm
jad said:
“Syrian forces kill 10 in Homs”
How and Why?
Because Homs is a battle field filled with terrorists using people as shield for their military actions, but you wont read this on any news, it’s all ‘peaceful’ civilian.
كتيبة ضباط خالد بن الوليد
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
عصابة الاسد بعد اعلانها الموافقة عالمبادرة العربية والتي تتضمن سحب الجيش من المدن واقاف القتل
القوات الاسدية تحاصر حي باباعمرو منذ الصباح وتضربها بالمدفعية
وتحاول الدخول من ثلاث محاور ولكن ابطال السرية الخضراء سرية عمر بن الخطاب كانت حصناً منيعاً ووقفوا بكل قواهم ضد هذه القوات المجرمة وحتا الاهالي من كبيرهم الى صغيرهم شاركوا بالدفاع عن الحي بسلاح الله أكبر فقد صدحت التكبيرات والدعاء وعلت على صوت الرصاص الله أكبر الله أكبر
وبعد هذه المعركة التي كانت اعنف معركة عرفها الحي انسحب الجيش الاسدي يجر زيول الهزيمة
وحسب التقديرات الاولية لخسائر العصابة الاسدية قتل وجرح اكثر من 100 مجرم
وتفجير 5 مدرعات شيلكا واحدة و4 BTR وطبعا خسائرهم اكثر من ذلك ولكن لانعلن سوى عن الارقام المؤكدة
هذا حي باباعمرو معقل الابطال
الله أكبر الله أكبر
News from Homs:
ملخص احداث حمص الدامية خلال 48 ساعة الماضية من شام برس ولا حول ولا قوة الا بالله العلي العظيم
في تصعيد دام استفاقت حمص اليوم كما هو الامس على أخبار وشائعات وعمليات قتل واختطاف ومسلحين تجوب الشوارع وتطلق النار عشوائياً وترافق ذلك مع معلومات عن سقوط عدد كبير من الشهداء من مختلف المناطق.
وأكدت معلومات لـ شام برس ان حصيلة الجثث التم العثور عليها منذ 48 ساعة الماضية هي 95 جثة والعدد قابل للارتفاع , في ظل ارتفاع عدد المفقودين , في الوقت الذي تم محاصرة القصر العدلي في حي الوعر من قبل المجموعات المسلحة , حيث عمدت على اطلاق النار وبشكل كثيف على مبنى القصر العدلي.
واستهدف مسلحون في الامس الاول 11 شاباً من شرق المدينة كانوا ضمن حافلة مدنية فقطعوا ونكلوا وقتلوا، أما امس استهدفت مجموعة مسلحة 11 شاباً من غرب المدنية كانوا يستقلون حافلة بالقرب من منطقة الحولة وأدخلوا ركابها التسعة إلى معمل محارم ورقية مضيفين إليهم صاحب المعمل وحارسه ليلقوا مصيراً مشابه لمصير أقرانهم الشرقيين، ولعل التشابه هو ترك النسوة ممن كن ضمن الحافلتين بعكس ماجرى داخل المدينة حين أقدم مسلحون على تعرية 3 عاملات في المشفى الوطني والتنكيل بهن برفقة زميلين لهن ليصلن الخمسة إلى المشفى الاهلي بمنظر دب الرعب في نفوس من رأى ومن سمع.
المشفى الأهلي استقبل اليوم 17 مدنياً بالغاً و4 أطفال و 6 عسكريين مصابون جميعاً بطلقات نارية وشظايا قنابل إضافة لـ 4 شهداء من قوى حفظ النظام و 5 شهداء مدنيين غير الموظفين آنفي الذكر .
والأسباب كثيرة فمنها قيام مسلحون يستقلون سيارة محملة بالألغام بإطلاق النار بشكل عشوائي على الناس، وإلقاء قنبلتين دفاعيتين لحظة خروج طلاب المدارس، مع تواجد أحد المسلحين أمام ثانوية نظير نشواتي أطلق العنان لنيران رشاشة تصيب من تشاء، في الوقت الذي أطلق فيه مسلحون النار من سيارة سابا خاصة فأصابوا عائلة كانوا ضمن سيارة سوزوكي فقتل الأب السائق ونقل أبنائه الثلاثة إلى المشفى مصابين بطلقات نارية.
الخطف اليوم كان له نصيب من الأحداث وبشكل جماعي حيث تم اختطاف حافلة نقل جماعية ” سرفيس” بل اثنتين، وربما 3 كما أكدت إحدى الجهات الرسمية ذات العلاقة برصد الأحداث أما فرادا فتم تسجيل خطف خمسة أشخاص بينهم العقيد محمود قيروط الذي قتل اثنين من أقاربه صباح اليوم فتم العثور عليهما في بساتين جوبر وموظف بأمانة السجل المدني مع ابنه لحظة خروجهما من الدوام.
جثث اليوم المعذبة والمقتولة على يد مجهولين والتي تم العثور عليها بلغت 6 إحداها لفنانة استعراضية وثانية لشرطي واثنتين لشقيقين من قرية المزرعة وخامسة لشاب من حي السبيل فيما السادسة لاتزال مجهولة.
المشفى الوطني استقبل اليوم قنابل دفاعية لتنضم إلى الجرحى في قسم الاسعاف حين استهدف مسلحون هذا القسم مطلقين النار من خارج أسوار المشفى فأصابوا سبعة بينهم حراس وشرطي ومراجعين للمشفى.
الخبر الأخير الذي وقع هو قيام مخربون بحرق إطارات على جسر الزارة في منطقة تلكلخ الأمر الذي أدى لعرقلة السير لمدة لا تقل عن الساعة.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:31 pm
Uzair8 said:
We have asked on here about Syrians refusing to pay taxes and bills. Is the following story on SANA related to this topic?
Exempting Taxpayers from Overdue Interests, Fines, Penalties if They Paid before December 31st, 2011 Approved
Nov 03, 2011
DAMASCUS, (SANA) – The People’s Assembly on Thursday approved the draft law on exempting taxpayers from overdue interests, unpaid fines and late payment penalties for the years 2010 and before if they paid the tax or the fees imposed on the aforementioned years before December, 31st, 2011 according to the following:
From 2010 and the years before included taxpayers of real profit income tax. From 2011 and the years before included taxpayers of fees and direct taxes.
The law aims at giving the opportunity for payment defaulters in light of the current events taking place in Syria to pay their taxes and fees in order to support the liquidity of the state treasury.
Minister of Finance Mohammad al-Jleilati said the law linked the exemption with paying the owed fees and taxes before December ,31st, 2011.
The Assembly referred the draft law on ratifying the memo of understanding signed between Syria and Cyprus on renewable energies and energy conservation project to the Committee of Constitutional and Legislative Affairs for study.
http://www.sana.sy/eng/21/2011/11/03/379801.htm
November 3rd, 2011, 3:39 pm
Ghufran said:
نبش القبور في ليبيا
قامت مجموعات متطرفة من الثوار، تنتمي إلى التيار ”الجهادي” الموالي لتنظيم القاعدة، بتدنيس مقابر تابعة لقبيلة القذاذفة بمدينة سرت، وهدمها، ثم استخراج العظام منها وحرقها.وحصلت ”النهار” الجزائرية على صور التقطت بعد نبش قبور آل القذافي في سرت، تبين مجموعة من المتشددين المنتمين للتيار ”الجهادي” في ليبيا، داخل فناء منزل به قبور لعائلة القذافي، حيث توضح الصور تعرض أربعة قبور للهدم والنبش والتدنيس. وأوضحت معطيات متفرقة بشأن الحادثة التي جرى التكتم بشأنها من طرف مسؤولي المجلس الانتقالي وقادة ”الثوار” أن القبور الأربعة تعود لوالدة القذافي، وعمه، واثنين من أقاربه، كلهم دفنوا في مقبرة عائلية داخل فناء منزل. وتفيد نفس المعطيات أن ضريح والدة العقيد الليبي الراحل، كان أكثر القبور تعرضا للتدنيس والاعتداء على حرمته، حيث جرى نبش القبر بعد هدمه، واستخراج الرفاة من الضريح، قبل القيام بحرقها، في سلوك عدواني لا يمكن تبريره.وتوضح إحدى الصور بشأن الحادثة، مجموعة من ”جهاديي” ليبيا، يحيطون بالقبور بعد نبشها، فيما كتبت على جدار الفناء عبارة ”لجنة هدم الأصنام”، وكأن الامر يتعلق بأوثان أو أصنام وليس بقبور مسلمين مدفونة على الطريقة الإسلامية.وتنذر حادثة نبش قبور آل القذافي، من أفراد عائلة الزعيم الليبي، بظهور تيارات ”جهادية” غاية في التطرف، تتبنى فكر ”الخوارج” و”التكفيريون”، وتستبيح المحرمات من خلال تفسير تعاليم الدين الاسلامي حسب الاهواء والغايات.وتنضاف حادثة نبش قبور آل القذافي وحرق عظام والدته، بعد أسابيع قليلة من مقتل القذافي ونجله المعتصم، بعد أسرهما على قيد الحياة، والتنكيل بهما وتعذيبهما، وهي المشاهد التي تناقلتها مختلف وسائل الإعلام في العالم، وشكلت صدمة كبيرة للرأي العام حول ما آلت اليه الامور في ليبيا.كبار المشايخ والعلماء أفتوا بحرمة الميت وقبره مثل حرمته حيا وقال الشيخ فوزان الفوزان أنه لا يجوز نبش قبر الميت وإخراجه منه إلا لمبرر شرعي، لأن هذا القبر الذي حل فيه يكون ملكا له لا يجوز نقله منه إلا لمبرر شرعي، كأن يكون دفن في أرض مغصوبة فإنه حينئذ ينبش، ويخرج من هذه الأرض إلى أرض مباحة، أو يكون بقاؤه فيها ليس أصلح له لفسادها بالماء أو غير ذلك فحينئذ يجوز نبشه وإخراجه إلى مكان آخر.وحرمت من جهتها هيئة كبار علماء السعودية نبش قبور الموتى واستخراج رفاتهم، خاصة إذا لم يكن الأمر يتعلق بضرورة شرعية، كاستعادة حق مغصوب وغيرها، ذلك ان حرمة الميت كحرمته وهو حي، فلا يجوز نبش قبره أو تدنيسه مهما كانت الظروف المؤدية لذلك إذا لم يكن هناك عذر شرعي، لأن موضع قبر الميت وقف عليه ما دام شيء منه لا يزال بداخله حتى يبلى تماما. وقالت هيئة كبار علماء السعودية أن نبش القبر لغير ما ذكره علماء الأمة من مبررات شرعية محرم شرعا، كأن يتم نبشه بغرض رؤية غائب للميت ولو كان قريب العهد بالدفن، لما في ذلك من هتك لحرمته التعدي عليه.
November 3rd, 2011, 3:41 pm
Mina said:
Jad
This Shalgam is fantastic! I just feel more sympathy for the new Lybian government now. If he wants to stage a coup against Qatar’s emir, I support him.
November 3rd, 2011, 4:12 pm
zoo said:
DOGS OF WAR BARKING AGAIN
By Kam Zarrabi, Intellectual Discourse
http://www.payvand.com/news/11/nov/1022.html
October is over and the sky hasn’t fallen on Iran as yet. Once again the advertised deadline has come and gone and the goal posts moved back for the next “imminent” threat by Israel or its surrogate ( the roles are now reversed ), the United States, to launch a preemptive strike against the Islamic Republic.
But wait! The Israeli paper Ha’aretz is reporting that Prime Minister Netanyahu has begun, again, to push the Knesset to approve attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities before the cloud covered winter skies over Iran would make the task more difficult; which means within the next few weeks! Meanwhile, the British paper, the Guardian, is reporting that Great Britain, another Israel surrogate, is preparing their armed forces for possible military action against the Islamic Republic. The United States is now “officially” showing concerns that the Israelis, having just successfully tested their nuke-capable long range (to reach Iran, that is) ballistic missile, might just take the initiative and strike Iranian targets rather than wait for the newly reinvigorated American imposed sanctions to work.
…
Remember, whenever the pit-bull, Netanyahu, ratchets up the threats of attacking Iran, unilaterally if need be, something else is going on behind the scenes, or right up front, if we are talking about that small pie-slice of the public that is endowed with IQs above two-digits. This gangster is up to something again; he wants something and, the American public can bet their bottom tax dollars that he’s going to get it.
{…}
Kam Zarrabi is the author of In Zarathushtra’s Shadow and Necessary Illusion. He has conducted lectures and seminars on international affairs, particularly in relation to Iran, with focus on US/Iran issues. Zarrabi’s latest book is Iran, Back in Context.
More information about Mr. Zarrabi and his work is available at:intellectualdiscourse.com
November 3rd, 2011, 4:54 pm
jad said:
المبادرة العربية والمفاجأة السورية
الجمل: اعتمدت دمشق الخيار العربي كمسار ضروري لاحتواء أزمة الاحتجاجات السياسية السورية، وفي هذا الخصوص فقد أسفرت الجهود العربية المشتركة عن التوصل إلى تفاهم مشترك تم الإعلان عنه مؤخراً على أمل أن تتحقق التهدئة ويتم حل الخلافات: فما هي طبيعة سيناريو الخلافات الاحتجاجية السياسية السورية في مرحلة ما بعد الإعلان عن مبادرة الجامعة العربية؟
* مبادرة الجامعة العربية: إشكاليات ما قبل الحوار
عقد مجلس وزراء الخارجية العرب اجتماعاً حول ملف الاحتجاجات السياسية السورية، وبعد إجراء المشاورات والتفاهمات، تم التغلب على الخلافات، وأسفرت النتيجة عن مبادرة عربية سعت إلى احتواء أزمة الملف، من خلال الآتي:
• وقف العنف أياً كان مصدره.
• اللجوء إلى الحوار كسبيل أساسي لحل الأزمة.
هذا، وإضافة لذلك، فقد سعت المبادرة إلى المطالبة بالقضاء على المظاهر المسلحة، إضافة إلى المطالبة بإفساح المجال أمام الإعلام، والمراقبين العرب، من أجل رصد التطورات الجارية، والتعرف المبكر على مظاهر الاختلالات المهددة للاستقرار.
برغم موافقة السلطات السورية على المبادرة العربية، فإن اعتماد المبادرة بواسطة أطراف المعارضة السورية بشقيها الداخلي والخارجي ما زال صعباً أمام التكهنات، ولكن ما هو أكثر احتمالاً، أن يحدث الآتي:
• أن توافق المعارضة الداخلية على الحوار، خاصة وأن قسماً كبيراً من هذه المعارضة قد سبق وشارك بجدية في فعاليات الحوار والتفاهم الوطني السوري الداخلي.
• أن تحدث الخلافات بين أطراف المعارضة الخارجية، وكما هو واضح، توجد أطراف ذات توجهات وطنية، تتميز بالاستقلالية والقابلية للحوار، وفي نفس الوقت توجد أطراف ذات توجهات مرتبطة بأطراف مثلث واشنطن ـ لندن ـ باريس، وبالتالي فهي لا تتمتع باستقلالية القرار، وقبولها الحوار والتفاهم سوف يكون رهيناً بقبول حلفائها الخارجيين.
تأسيساً على ذلك، فقد برزت بعض المؤشرات التي تفيد لجهة أن المبادرة العربية وإن كانت قد وجدت قبول وموافقة السلطات السورية، فإن هذه المبادرة، سوف لن تجد القبول الكامل الموحد بواسطة المعارضة، الأمر الذي سوف يدفع أمانة الجامعة العربية إلى إجراء المزيد من الاتصالات والتفاهمات مع رموز المعارضة الخارجية، وبالتأكيد سوف يصل الأمر إلى قيام الأمانة العامة بإجراء الاتصالات والتفاهمات مع العواصم الخارجية التي ظلت تقوم بدور الراعي والحاضنة الأساسية للمعارضة الخارجية.
* مقاربة طاولة الحوار السوري: إشكالية الإدراك المتبادل بين أطراف الحوار
لم تنعقد بعد طاولة الحوار السوري، التي سوف تتم تحت رعاية أمانة الجامعة العربية، وعلى ما يبدو فإن الأمر يتطلب “فترة انتقالية”، سوف تمتد من لحظة “موافقة دمشق” التي تمت بالأمس الأربعاء 2 تشرين الثاني (نوفمبر) 2011م، إلى حين حلول لحظة موافقة المعارضة السورية الداخلية والخارجية، وهي لحظة سوف يتطلب الوصول إليها قيام أمانة الجامعة العربية بالمزيد من الاتصالات وبذل الجهود وممارسة فنون الدبلوماسية.
الأكثر أهمية خلال الفترة الانتقالية القادمة، والتي بدأت بالأمس، سوف يتمثل في الآتي:
• التعرف على الإدراك المتبادل:
ـ أمانة الجامعة العربية: تنظر بعض أطراف الجامعة العربية إلى جهود أمانة الجامعة باعتبارها تندرج ضمن فعاليات “التدخل” من أجل حل النزاعات. وتنظر أطراف أخرى إلى هذه الجهود باعتبارها تندرج ضمن فعاليات “الوساطة” من أجل حل النزاعات، وعلى أساس اعتبارات خبرة حل النزاعات والصراعات فإن مفهوم “التدخل” يختلف عن مفهوم “الوساطة”، وبكلمات أخرى، كيف تنظر أمانة الجامعة العربية إلى نفسها، هل هي “متدخل” يسعى لفرض الإملاءات على الفرقاء السوريين، أم أنها “وسيط” يسعى لعقد طاولة الحوار بين هؤلاء الفرقاء؟
ـ النظام السوري: يتمسك بمبدأ احترام السيادة الوطنية السورية، كأساس لأي حوار ولأي حل يمكن التوصل إليه، وبالتالي، فهو أكثر اهتماماً باعتماد جهود أمانة الجامعة العربية على أساس اعتبارات أنها “وساطة” وليست فعلاً تدخلياً مهدداً للسيادة الوطنية، وإضافة لذلك ينظر إلى المعارضة باعتبارها شأن وطني داخلي ويتوجب التعامل معها ضمن الأطر الوطنية السيادية، ورفض ارتباط هذه المعارضة بأي أطراف أجنبية أو أجندة خارجية حتى لو كانت عربية.
ـ المعارضة السورية: تتفاوت توجهاتها الإدراكية، وهي وإن كانت تنظر إلى النظام السوري كخصم، فإن العديد من القوى المعارضة أكثر اهتماماً برفض التدخل الأجنبي، والقليل من هذه المعارضة أصبح غير مبال بمخاطر المطالبة بالتدخل الأجنبي، وتأسيساً على ذلك، تنظر المعارضة الخارجية إلى الجامعة العربية باعتبارها يجب أن تلعب دور نافذة التدخل الأجنبي، بحيث تكون جهود أمانة الجامعة العربية بمثابة الخطوة الأولى التي يجب أن تعقبها خطوة نقل الملف من الطاولة العربية إلى “طاولة التدويل”.
تشير معطيات الإدراك المتبادل، إلى أن أطراف المبادرة الثلاثة، لم يصلوا إلى فهم وإدراك موحد لطبيعة توازن القوى في مسرح الاحتجاجات السياسية السورية، وبكلمات أخرى، تزايدت المواكب الداعمة للنظام السوري، لجهة كبر الحجم وتزايد المشاركة، إضافة إلى تغطية المدن الكبيرة الرئيسية، وبالنسبة للفعاليات الاحتجاجية السياسية، فما زالت تنحصر في منطقة المثلث الأوسط الذي يتكون من حمص ـ حماة ـ الرستن. وبدرجة أقل المثلث الشمالي الذي يضم جسر الشغور ـ معرة النعمان ـ إدلب. أما المثلث الجنوبي فقد انخفضت فعالياته إلى الحدود الدنيا.
وبرغم ذلك، فقد أدى نجاح فعاليات خيار دمشق المزدوج الذي سعى منذ البداية إلى التعامل مع الاحتجاجات وفقاً للجمع المتوازي بين خيار الحوار وخيار مكافحة العنف، إلى جعل الفعاليات تنحصر في مناطق معينة، إضافة إلى جعل بعض المناطق الساخنة تتحول إلى مناطق هادئة، ثم تتحول إلى مناطق داعمة لخيار الحوار، ومن أبرز الأمثلة على ذلك مدينة دير الزور التي سيرت مؤخراً موكباً كبيراً داعماً لدمشق، إضافة إلى موكب مدينة الرقة، وموكب مدينة السويداء. وهي جميعها مناطق لم تكن خلال الفترات الماضية تعكس مثل هذا القدر الكبير من التأييد الداعم لدمشق.
وبالنسبة للمعارضة الخارجية، فإن إدراكها لحقيقة توازن القوى الداخلي، جعلها تسعى إلى استبدال رهان الخيار الشعبي الاحتجاجي برهان التدخل الخارجي، وفي هذا الخصوص فمن المتوقع أن تسعى المعارضة الخارجية خلال الفترة الانتقالية القادمة لجهة الآتي:
• عرقلة أي تفاهمات مع أمانة جامعة الدول العربية.
• تحريض أطراف مثلث واشنطن ـ باريس ـ لندن لجهة الضغط على الدوحة والرياض من أجل التخلي عن جهود المبادرة العربية.
• السعي لتصعيد الفعاليات الإعلامية المعادية لدمشق.
• السعي لاستخدام بعض الجيوب الاحتجاجية الداخلية لجهة القيام بالمزيد من عمليات العنف المادي الانتقائي.
من المتوقع أن تواجه مبادرة أمانة جامعة الدول العربية، المزيد من الضغوط الخارجية، وبالتالي، فإن حجم التفاؤل بنجاح هذه المبادرة سوف يكون ضئيلاً، طالما أن بعض الأطراف المعارضة قد سعت لجهة طرح بعض الشروط التعجيزية الاستباقية، والتي تحمل بشكل واضح مضموناً ساعياً لإجهاض المبادرة أكثر من العمل من أجل إنجاحها.
وتأسيساً على ذلك، سوف تسعى بعض الأطراف الخارجية المعادية لدمشق باتجاه استخدام مقاربات السردية المعكوسة، والتي سوف تهتم بتحميل دمشق المسؤولية عن فشل المبادرة، وليس المعارضة الخارجية الرافضة استباقياً لهذه المبادرة.
الجمل ـ قسم الدراسات والترجمة
http://www.aljaml.com/node/77226
November 3rd, 2011, 5:13 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
It is very clear the regime is not abiding by the AL agreement,it is very clear the regime supporters are recruited to defend the regime violations,they quote unreliable sources and they twist facts,and they go off subject like talk about rumors in Lybia,they all has no credibility.
Now is not the time to talk about dialogue,now is the time to talk about the regime standing for his words,the regime say something and something else,the regime is lying,deceiving,similar to his supporters.
Since the regime clearly has no intention to do what he promised,AL must meet,take a decisive action,and put an end to this silly game played by the regime,the credibilty of AL is on stake,the regime is to blame,the destruction of Syria is the sole resposibility of the regime,arrogance and stubborness will hurt Assad and his supporters.
Viva Syria, Down Down with Assad and his supporters
November 3rd, 2011, 5:15 pm
Tara said:
Bronco
Hi. I don’t know who Khaled Oweiss is but on what basis are you calling him sectarian? Is it because he is Sunni or because he has an anti-Assad tone?
November 3rd, 2011, 5:17 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
I meant to say
The regime say something and does something else
November 3rd, 2011, 5:20 pm
ann said:
so what?!
November 3rd, 2011, 5:25 pm
bronco said:
Tara
I have been following his articles for many months , he always emphasizing the religious aspect of the unrest and his articles are full of “alawite’ and “shia” and “sunnis” . I don’t care if he is budhist or Zoroastrian, but just the way he tries to minimize the huge demonstrations of support by using a “some” and “but” show well what the guy is all about. I have noticed that most Arab journalists writing in AFP and Reuters are zealous, full of hidden hatred and biased, but Khaled Oweiss is beyond repair.
November 3rd, 2011, 5:51 pm
bronco said:
#164 Majed
The SNC gave a clear NO to dialog to the Arab League while Bashar gave a clear YES. I wonder what do you think about that.
November 3rd, 2011, 5:57 pm
zoo said:
Conflict Risk Alert: Syria’s Tipping Point
Brussels | 3 Nov 2011
“Despite understandable scepticism, both the protest movement and the international community ought to give this initiative a fair chance;”
http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/publication-type/media-releases/2011/conflict-risk-alert-Syria-tipping-point.aspx
Brussels, 3 November 2011: Syria’s acceptance of the Arab League proposal to defuse the crisis presents an eleventh-hour opportunity to seek a negotiated transition before the conflict takes an even uglier turn. Despite understandable scepticism, both the protest movement and the international community ought to give this initiative a fair chance; for either one to dismiss or undermine it would be to offer the regime justification for rejecting both the deal and responsibility for its failure. The regime’s intentions soon will be put to the test. In coming days, protesters will take to the streets with renewed energy, probing President Bashar al Assad’s sincerity after months of rising repression; they cannot be expected to show patience for protracted political talks devoid of swift, tangible results on the ground. The various strands of the opposition ought to publicly reject violent attacks against security forces and accept to engage in a dialogue with no condition other than the regime’s implementation of the plan. Likewise the international community should fully endorse the deal and adjust its reaction to developments on the ground. Only by giving Damascus a genuine opportunity to live up to its commitments under the plan can the international community reach consensus on holding it accountable should it choose to flout them.
The agreement unquestionably is flawed. It calls for a halt to violence and for the regime to withdraw its forces, release those detained as a result of recent events, grant access to the Arab League as well as Arab and international media, and, within two weeks, initiate a dialogue with the opposition under League auspices. But it does so in relatively vague terms, thereby virtually ensuring that the regime will try to re-negotiate in practice what it has already approved in principle. The agreement does not explicitly mention the right to peaceful demonstrations, a key opposition demand. Likewise, it fails to provide a mechanism for effective on-the-ground monitoring to supervise implementation. As far as one can tell, it is backed by neither meaningful incentives nor credible threats in the event the regime reneges on its commitments or plays for time. More fundamentally, the agreement may simply be unrealistic. It is hard to imagine why the regime would risk jeopardizing its most significant achievement to date, namely preventing the kind of mass demonstrations that would conclusively establish its lack of legitimacy – and that the protest movement will now seek to organise. Indeed, large numbers of Syrians almost certainly will take to the streets – including in Damascus – were they to conclude that the deal provides them with some protection.
This could well be a last chance. If peaceful protests face continued repression in coming days, a more violent and dangerous confrontation is almost certain to develop. Syria’s eight-month-old uprising is fast approaching a dangerous tipping point.
{…}
November 3rd, 2011, 6:03 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Bronco
As I said it is not time to talk about dialogue,SNC said with the regime continued brutal military crackdown they say no to dialogue, if Assad respects his word,and I doubt it,then as Haytham Maleh said it is ok for dialogue.
You said Bashar said YES, did he followed up and stopped the killing,No,when he says yes he means NO,no one should trust him.he is a lier.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:04 pm
bronco said:
Tara
Khaled Oweis of Reuters spreads war propaganda against Syria in Todays Zaman
6. September 2011
http://nocheinparteibuch.wordpress.com/2011/09/06/khaled-oweis-of-reuters-spreads-war-propaganda-against-syria-in-todays-zaman/
….And most interesting is to know who is Reuters propagandist Khalid Oweis.
First of all it’s known that Reuters propagandist Khalid Oweis was working in Syria fo a couple of years, but was expelled from Syria in March because he was caught spreading lies and fabrications to incite people in Syria. Second it’s known about Khalid Oweis that he was acting as an almost regular informant of the US embassy in Syria, so that his role in Syria would be better described as a spy of the US government working under the cover of journalism. And third, he was especially spying for the US embassy as a „strictly protected“ source on Syrian actions against the secret US regime change network in Syria.
This leads to an interesting question: how does it come that the cousin of a village „blacksmith“ has the telephone number of exactly the US „informant“ Khalid Oweis in Jordan who is in charge at Reuters of spreading propaganda against Syria? If there was really a phone call, it looks pretty much like that US-led Syrian terrorists get Khalid Oweis number from the US government agency to have a fitting story invented when a terrorist gets caught.
Beside that it’s possible to compare it with a different version of anti-Syrian propaganda from other US propaganda outlets, which obviously didn’t get the same script and draw conclusions on what’s the truth. The Los Angelos Times has obviously a different script for it’s propaganda against Syria, because it shows some 100 Dollar video fabrications and blames all thinkable evils on the Syrian government, but not only forgot to mention the recent victims of the US-led terrorists in Syria, but also forgot to mention a cross border shooting.
So, what does it mean? Reuters and US „informant“ Khaled Oweis are caught once more red handed spreading terrorist’s propaganda lies disguised as news to prepare grounds for a war of aggression against Syria.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:14 pm
bronco said:
Majed #171
Please face the reality of the SNC ( the local opposition have a different approach):
The SNC does not want any dialog, whether the violence stops or not, they only WANT BASHAR AL ASSAD TO RESIGN.
That is their clear answer.
“Asked if the SNC agrees to engage in talks with the Syrian regime, Nashar said: “No.
“We are not talking about a dialogue. We offered to engage in negotiations to move from a authoritarian regime to a democratic regime. And we ask that Bashar al-Assad resign.”
November 3rd, 2011, 6:20 pm
Tara said:
Bronco
I hope you agree that describing a “sectarian situation” does not make one necessarily sectarian. While the revolution is not a revolution of Sunnis against Alawis, sectarianism has played a significant role in shaping it. The army did not side with the people of the revolution as it did in Tunesia and Egypt due to its sectarian structure. Minorities are mostly supporting the regime because of their fear of Sunni ‘s rule. Iraq’s Maliki is supporting Assad despite Assad exporting terrorists to wreck havoc in Iraq because of sectarian reason.
While I am fully aware of the presence of Sunni Shabbiha and Sunni corrupts, etc…yet sectarianism played a significant role in shaping the uprising that I do not believe any one
can deny.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:22 pm
bronco said:
Tara
Yes, I agree of the component,but there is no point in emphasizing it systematically and constantly, unless the aim of the journalist is to instigate hatred and suspicion among the communities, that seem to be the obvious goal of Khaled Oweiss. I don’t bother reading his articles anymore, they smell bad.
Zeina Karam and Bassem Mroue also from Jordan are biased and present and manipulate the information to fit their agenda, but they are not sectarian.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:27 pm
Tara said:
Majed and Bronco
I think the SNC is making a mistake. They should be more cunning. They should’ve not said no. They should’ve said yes while asserting their demands. Location in Cairo or Doha. Timing after withdrawal of the army and the shabeeha.. Content of the dialogue is about peaceful transfer of power. By not saying no and insisting on their demands, that we all know Bashar can not meet, the 2wks would pass While the army and Shsbeeha still not withdrawn. The initiative would then be declared a failure with Bashar to blame. When they say no from the get-go, they are setting themselves up for a blame and we could enter a stalemate.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:33 pm
bronco said:
Tara
If the SNC accepts the dialog with Bashar they will be discredited and will break the already fragile ‘unity’ with their members.
The MB and others die hard will never accept to sit with Bashar, it would be too humiliating and would appear as a defeat.
I think that if they said Yes to the dialog, the SNC would have collapsed from internal dissensions.
I guess they chose to keep the cohesion of the group and wait.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:42 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
I think the SNC (whatever that mean-sound colonial b.s. scam) is doing the prudent thing saying FLAT NO. When you are after bringing down the regime, you simply cannot negotiate with it. It is time now for the fight, lets see more axing in Homs and Utube, we need to assemble an indictment, I mean what you call it, yeah something you will like, just close your eyes do what I say and trust me. Just keep doing the same, but please promote it more aggressively on T.V. It show you are Macho-Macho men and that you can lead Syria in the near future, next month maybe. One thing missing, to make it really effective and scary to Alawi, you must wrap a black bandana around those doing teh brave axing with teh world La Ilah Illa Allah in white lettering on it. Otherwise, allah will dissaprove of it, not halal, and not scary for Chrisyian and Alawis. Take my personal advise and run with it, I will never wish you but glory and big win.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:50 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
A new Macho Motto for Syrian Revolutionaries, all of them, the CIA, Mossad, 4legged Turks and bedouin paid ones, here it is:
“JUST SAY NO”
“Just Say NO”
louder
“Just Say NO”
MUCH LOUDER DUMMIES
JUST SAY NO, HOMSI SAYS TO REGIME JUST SAY NO.
November 3rd, 2011, 6:56 pm
ATASSI said:
VERY IMPORTANT
In a meeting today between a delegation from the Syrian National Council and the Secretary General of the Arab League, he reaffirmed that all Arabic and International media as organizations and individuals …have the right to obtain visas to entere Syria and move freely in all of Syria to observe the reality of the conditions and see what is happening, as was noted in the plan of actions. He also confirmed that any media outlet or person who applies for a visa and does not get it should communicate that to the Arab League, as these instances will be recorded as violations. Please publicize this important information including the following fax numbers for the Arab League 00205740331 – 00205761017 – 00205779546See More
November 3rd, 2011, 7:01 pm
atassi said:
VERY IMPORTANT
VERY IMPORTANT
VERY IMPORTANT
In a meeting today between a delegation from the Syrian National Council and the Secretary General of the Arab League, he reaffirmed that all Arabic and International media as organizations and individuals …have the right to obtain visas to entere Syria and move freely in all of Syria to observe the reality of the conditions and see what is happening, as was noted in the plan of actions. He also confirmed that any media outlet or person who applies for a visa and does not get it should communicate that to the Arab League, as these instances will be recorded as violations. Please publicize this important information including the following fax numbers for the Arab League 00205740331 – 00205761017 – 00205779546See More
November 3rd, 2011, 7:02 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Bronco
Please say the Truth, SNC did not officially said no, this is an opinion of Mr Nashar,they have not yet receieved any invitation, this is not a time to talk about dialogue,Bashar has not comply with what he said,pulling the army out is what we should talk about now.
November 3rd, 2011, 7:08 pm
Tara said:
20 people were killed in Homs today and 2000 were arrested from Damascus suburbs today as per the LCC.
November 3rd, 2011, 7:14 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
At last I found the text of the Arab League thingy about Syria at the website of the Arab League, dated 2 Nov 2011, in Arabic:
http://www.arableagueonline.org/wps/wcm/connect/e7f5aa8048ed17fdbc35fd7abaae88c3/syria+11-2011.pdf?MOD=AJPERES
I got that link via http://newsfromsyria.blogspot.com/
The main part of it was copied by MAJED97 at #21 above and translated to English by Revlon at #99 above.
November 3rd, 2011, 7:27 pm
jad said:
https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=219152988150712
HNN| شـبكة أخـبار حمص
ذوي الشهداء يتكلمون عن مجازر المجموعات الإرهابية في حمص و الأهالي يتكلمــون أمام شــاحنة معـبــأة بجثـــث أولادهم و أقربائهم من العمال و الفلاحين و الموظفين المدنيين
و شاهدة عيان تروي قصة اختطاف سرفيس خط جب عباس و كيف قام الإرهابيون بقتل الركاب الذكور بدم بارد … الجزيرة و العبرية شاركتا مع كل موظفيهم بهذه الجرائم و سنأخذ حقنا منهم عاجلاً أم آجلاً …
November 3rd, 2011, 7:28 pm
Tara said:
Meet The Free Syrian Army
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/middle-east/111102/syria-free-syrian-army-bashar-al-assad
Members of the Free Syrian Army at a safehouse on northern Lebanon’s border with Syria.
BORDER WITH SYRIA, Lebanon — Abu Ali is an unlikely freedom fighter.
Dressed in the trademark leather jacket of the Syrian secret police, Abu Ali spent his early career as an enforcer of the state, a member of Syria’s Military Intelligence who wrote reports on friends, tortured confessions out of suspected opponents and answered directly to General Assef Shawkat, President Bashar al-Assad’s feared brother-in-law.
But as night fell recently across a rocky plateau dividing northern Lebanon from Syria, Abu Ali gathered his men for the latest mission of the Free Syrian Army, a fledgling fighting force of defected soldiers and volunteers calling for international arms as they seek to replicate Libya’s rebels by bringing down the Assad family’s 41-year dictatorship by force.
“There’s a base for the security forces nearby so we’re going to survey how many men they have and their firepower,” said Abu Ali, whispering in the pitch black to avoid drawing the attention of the Syrian soldiers standing guard at their base, less than 150 meters away. “We need to monitor their movements so we can prepare to attack them.”
Syria: How it all began
Sent to Daraa, the southern border town that was the cradle of the Syrian uprising, with orders to shoot to kill protesters, Abu Ali said he defected after being redeployed to the central industrial city of Homs, his hometown.
“I couldn’t shoot my own people,” he said, his face covered by a traditional checkered scarf, certain of the torture that awaits Syrian soldiers like him, were he to be caught.
The first officer to announce the establishment of the Free Syrian Army back in June, Col. Hussein Harmoush, was hunted down by Assad’s security and forced to appear on state-run television denouncing the defectors after his home in northwest Syria was razed and several family members were killed or captured.
Most of the soldiers of the Free Syrian Army, scattered along the border of north Lebanon, appeared poorly armed, carrying a mismatch of Kalashnikovs, shotguns and hunting rifles. But if there are enough to go around, each man ensures he carries a single hand grenade, to be used as a last resort.
“We will not be taken alive,” said Musab, one of the defected soldiers, from a second Free Syrian Army unit based close to the border. “If they come for us, we will kill ourselves and them.”
Related: Syria’s cyber revolution
Musab described a recent mission he led, armed with the unit’s only rocket-propelled grenade, to smuggle an injured Syrian civilian across the border into Lebanon while delivering medical supplies, including tetanus shots to treat shrapnel wounds, bags of blood and gauze bandages, into Syria.
“We were spotted and they opened up on us with all they had,” said Musab, describing a clash with loyalist Syrian troops. “I tried to cover my men so they could retreat. But the first RPG didn’t fire. I tried the second. It didn’t fire. I tried the third. It didn’t fire, either.”
After four hours pinned down under heavy fire, grenades exploding all around him, Musab radioed back to his commander across the border in Lebanon.
“I said, ‘Forget freedom, just come and get me!’” he recalled, drawing a hearty laugh from the men assembled in a Lebanese safe house.
But their laughter quickly subsided: Lacking ammunition, heavy weapons or even a solid command and control structure, the fighters of the Free Syrian Army know very well that each mission could likely be their last.
“Our strategy is to fight a guerilla war against Assad’s troops,” said Musab’s commander, known to his division of around 150 men as Quteiba. “We established the Free Syrian Army to protect the protesters until they reach their goal of toppling this regime.”
More: Syrian tribes embrace nonviolent resistance
Abu Ali, Quteiba and their men, seem — at first glance at least — little more than a rag tag band of out of work soldiers, scraping by on bread and spaghetti and a few hours of electricity a day in Lebanon’s poorest and most remote region.
But having cheered the death of former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, leaders of the Free Syrian Army insist the world must now turn its attention to them as it did for Libya’s rebels, calling on the West to impose a no-fly zone over Syria and to provide arms and support.
“The more weapons we have the more progress we can make,” Quteiba said. “We call on the international community, whether it’s the EU, the Arab League, France or Germany, to provide us with weapons and ammunition. If we have a no-fly zone and a safe area for our base, the collapse of the regime’s army will be swift. This is an army that serves a person and a family, not a country and its citizens.”
Free Syrian Army leaders told GlobalPost that a second defected colonel, Riad al-Asaad (no relation to the ruling family), had taken command of the Free Syrian Army, estimated to number between 7,000 and 10,000 troops, the majority of which remain inside Syria, with division commanders based across Syria’s borders in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon.
Like Abu Ali, Quteiba also spent a long career inside Assad’s security state, working 29 years for Military Intelligence and winning prizes as the army’s top sniper.
But witnessing what he described as a massacre of civilians in Homs — which has been at the sharp end of the near eight month uprising and crackdown, and Avaaz, a leading rights group working in Syria, now believes has killed more than 5,500 people — pushed Quteiba to defect.
“They used fire engines to wash the blood off the streets and threw the dead bodies into pick-up trucks without even allowing them to be buried,” Quteiba said. “That was the saddest moment.”
Alongside such deep personal motivation, the soldiers of the Free Syrian Army also display militarily discipline.
Calling out numbers to deploy his men to survey different sectors around the Syrian base, Abu Ali hunkers beside a rock and makes a call on his mobile.
“Hello, yes, sir. I’m the officer from the middle area. The head of the unit. Sir, we did our surveillance mission […] No, sir, there are no checkpoints, only guards. Yes, there are snipers. […] Can we make an operation against them, sir?”
The request is declined and Abu Ali follows orders from what he said was the headquarters of the Free Syrian Army in Jisr al-Shughour, an area of northwest Syria that has seen some of the heaviest fighting between Assad’s security forces and defected soldiers, including airstrikes on their men, the Free Syrian Army claimed.
“I feel proud that we can say to the people, we are the Free Syrian Army and we are here on the ground,” said Abu Ali, his whisper easing as his men drew closer to their safe house back in Lebanon. “We hope we can make big operations soon that will topple this regime.”
November 3rd, 2011, 7:35 pm
jad said:
Louai,
Check this out, that is exactly what I meant in my earlier comment, citizens always find ways to work together in one neighbourhood, it builds a healthy society regardless of any failed political system you have:
شبكة أخبار حمص H.N.N
طرح بعض الاصدقاء موضوع حراسة الشوارع من قبل اللجان الشعبية ونحن نقترح حراسة الشوارع عن طريق البلكونات أو الاسطح يعني إتفقوا ضمن الحارة الوحدة انو كل شب بالليل يوقف على بلكون بيتو نص ساعة بالتناوب مع بقية الشباب ومن دون ماحدا ينزل عالشارع وفي حال أي إشتباه بحدا صوت واحد او عبر الموبايل بتخبروا بعض
والبعض الاخر تكلم عن موضوع التجول بالمدينة نحنا مننصح انو في حال كان الواحد لازم يروح على منطقة معينة ما يروح لحالوا يعني ضمن مجموعة يكون التحرك
وبالنسبة للبنات يلي عم يروحوا على اماكن غير اماكنة او عم يشتغلوا باماكن او مكاتب مسخرة او مشاغل الطريق إليها غير امن يندفسوا يقعدوا ببيوتن لان ما رح يموتوا من الجوع
طبعاً هي الإجراءات انية شغلة يومين لحتى توضح الصورة شوي .
One more example, I think it’s taken from an article I linked couple days ago written by a Homsi about his daily life, so now people are using his advice for a safer movements:
From FB:
طريقة اقتبستا من إخواننا في حمص….
ضرورية كتير وخصوصي للصبايا… ورح لخصلكون إياها على طريقتي.
وين ما كنت وبأي محافظة…. واضطريت تطلع بتكسي أو سرفيس. الرجاء اتباع ما يلي:
١ـ بس تأشر للتكسي ، احفظ رقم الفانوس.
٢ـ مجرد ما طلعت بالسيارة، اكتب الرقم برسالة وارسلو مباشرة لشخص من أقرباءك أو أصدقاءك.
٣ـ خليك جنب الباب وإيدك عالمسكة وضل محترس من أي حركة فجائية.
٤ـ افتح الشباك شوي يمكن يلزم للصراخ و للتخفيف من تأثير أي غاز مخدر.
وبتعرفوا!!!! ما رح اترجى حدا ينشرا، بس بدي قلكون أي واحد بيصير عندو علم باللي كتبتوا وما بينشروا و مابيعلم هالطريقة للناس…
الله لايوفقوا من هلق ليوم الدين…
وأنا وديني ووطني بريئين منو ليوم القيامة.
والسلام….
للنشررررررررررررررررررررررررر
November 3rd, 2011, 7:40 pm
jad said:
“Meet The Free Syrian Army”
They better title this article:
“Meet The terrorist Army”
November 3rd, 2011, 7:43 pm
louai said:
in front of a track full of their dead brother sons and friends, the relatives of the martyrs who were kidnapped killed abd mutilated speaking to the Syrian TV
one of the survivors of the kidnapped bus telling her testimony
ذوي الشهداء يتكلمون عن مجازر المجموعات الإرهابية في حمص و الأهالي يتكلمــون أمام شــاحنة معـبــأة بجثـــث أولادهم و أقربائهم من العمال و الفلاحين و الموظفين المدنيين و شاهدة عيان تروي قصة اختطاف سرفيس خط جب عبــــاس و كيف قام الإرهابيون بقتل الركاب الذكور بدم بارد … الجزيرة و العبرية شاركتا مع كل موظفيهم بهذه الجرائم و سنأخذ حقنا منهم عاجلاً أم آجلاً …
https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=219152988150712
November 3rd, 2011, 7:58 pm
Tara said:
Islam’s real enemy: the Muslim-meter
Thursday, November 3, 2011
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=islam8217s-real-enemy-the-muslim-meter-2011-11-03
One cannot help but admire the often ignored quote by prominent Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, which one of his intellectual followers recently reminded me of during a private conversation: “Just like there are endless ways human beings breathe, there are endless ways human beings practice their belief; and all of them must be respected.” I recalled, with sorrow, that line when I recently read a brief review of a book written by a former top Muslim cleric (and one of the founders of the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP).
Tayyar Altikulaç, former head of the Religious Affairs Directorate (Diyanet), former MP and former member of the AKP’s politburo, has published his memoirs “While Overcoming Hardships” in which he details his religious and political careers since 1971. Mr. Altikulaç recalls that the late Necmettin Erbakan, Turkey’s first Islamist prime minister, believed “Muslims who did not support his party were not good Muslims, or perhaps not Muslims at all.” Mr. Altikulaç also recalls that Diyanet was upset about Süleymancilar, a Muslim community, because of the way they practiced Islam. “Likewise, they thought our Muslimness was incomplete and faulty,” he wrote.
In one of my previous articles I invented the term “Muslim-meter” in reference to pious Muslims’ powerful belief that only “they” have the monopoly to judge if another Muslim is Muslim or Muslim enough. A declaration beginning with “What kind of a Muslim are you?” is part of the devout Muslim culture, often ending with condemnation of a display behavior some Muslims think would be against the holy scriptures while others may think it would not. It’s bizarre that every observant individual bestows himself with a God-given authority to judge/gauge. Every individual is equipped with a self-gifted Muslim-meter!
It’s even more bizarre that even Turkey’s pious – for instance Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his always pious comrades – are too pious for secular Turks and too secular for, say, Arab, Iranian, Pakistani or Afghan Muslims. Secular Turks may think Mr. Erdoğan is too pious because he is obsessed with the headscarf, but then the Arab or Afghan Muslim might think he is not Muslim enough because he shakes hands with women and says states should be secular.
Islamists have often wrongly portrayed Turkey’s ideological fault lines as a struggle between Muslims and others, indirectly declaring millions of secular Muslim Turks as non-Muslims. (In fact, they often humiliatingly call secular Muslims as “ID Muslims.”) This thinking was perhaps most vividly expressed when then Parliament Speaker Bulent Arınç spoke in 2007 of “electing, for the first time, a Muslim president.” Using his own Muslim-meter, Mr. Arınç had quickly found out that all of the 10 former presidents were non-Muslims.
Ironically, this self-gifted authority to judge someone’s Muslimness works both ways. I had to smile during a recent conversation with an Egyptian friend who quickly dismissed Mr. Erdoğan et al as being “freshwater Muslims.” “They don’t even sport a ‘zebibah’ on their foreheads,” my friend said with a tone similar to Mr. Arınç’s when the latter had declared 10 presidents as non-Muslim. (The zebibah, Arabic for raisin, is a dark circle or in some cases a protruding bump between the hairline and the eyebrows. It emerges on the spot where worshippers press their foreheads into the ground during their daily prayers. It is a symbol of observance.)
Apparently, this is an endless desire to accuse “the other” of being “the other” simply because “the other” practices the same religion in “other” ways.
In that regard, it is imperative that Muslims should lend an ear to Professor Mehmet Görmez, head of the institution Mr. Altikulaç once chaired. Speaking to a Saudi publication in late September, Professor Görmez said: “Moving on from his own world of belief, if a Muslim accuses another of deviance or for being an infidel, or judges his faith, this would amount to ideological terror.” Worse, such behavior would amount to the unforgivable sin of associating mortals with God, according to the Quran.
There won’t be peace in the Muslim world before an overwhelming majority of Muslims throw away their Muslim-meters. I know they won’t listen to infidels like this columnist. It’s puzzling, though, why they tend to ignore the respected ulema like Mr. Gülen or Professor Görmez.
November 3rd, 2011, 8:09 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: TARA
RE: “…Meet The Free Syrian Army…”
Great article, Tara. You did cut and paste it, but it was refreshingly well-written and informative, putting a human face on the officers and men of the FSA, so different from the dreary tissues of delusion we’re getting from Spammy Annie and What’s-his-Name-JAD and Bronco Billy…
November 3rd, 2011, 8:10 pm
louai said:
thanks Jad , i didnt see you posted the link but its worth to see again and again
Homsi people are very creative but what holding them is the fact they dont want to make the army job harder , in my neighborhood many of my friends went to the streets guarding every corner to assist the police when everything started 8 month ago they were asked to leave the street and let the government do its job . They will go back soon to the streets i am telling you , i reed this in private pages on facebook and everyone is talking about that
the main problem is the attacks are random and its main purpose is terrorizing the citizens and put pressure on the government , they are trying desperately to flame the sectarian tension and i am afraid its not long time and the people will start to take their revenge by hand, specially if the army did not restore order in the next few days
November 3rd, 2011, 8:10 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
@JAD -185
Thanks. Their silence and lack of condemnation here is telling, but that is all needed to expose the bastards for what they are and what they are after, paid hired genocidal Moslem murderers. Amazing, when you give them the money, what supposedly Moslem religious people will do, kill and more kill. They join Islam not to seek salvation, they join it to satisfy their thirst for murder and killing, that is why Moslems uses swords as logos on everything. Christian uses white dove, Jews uses olive branch, daggers and sword are symbols only used by Moslems, evil demonic and diabolic being they are rushing to serve a demonic god with twisted ideology impostring, and deceitfully associating, with other noble faiths and claiming to be part of them, that is how the Devil Satan works, making imposture and deceit.
I have been told that Bashar is couple weeks for moving in and finishing them dam Moslem filthy mercenaries off by thousands of trained sharp shooters. They have obtained all the Intel to who they are and whereabouts, all he needs now is to build the media up in his favor, let them commit and brag on more atrocities so Syrians can join with him in the “Final Solution”. That is why he is allowing all media to come in and watch, as long as they report fairly and expose it all. They are doomed. In few weeks not many will be left in the streets. Not many will dare to put foot in Syria at any price.
November 3rd, 2011, 8:16 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: SYRIAN NATIONALIST (LET’S HAVE A) PARTY
RE: “…Bashar is a couple weeks away from moving in and finishing those damn Moslem filthy mercenaries off with thousands of trained sharp shooters…”
Good to know you’re on top of things, Bucko. So President Pencilneck is about to unleash “The Mother of All Sniper Attacks” on the MB, eh? I’d like to see him try. If he does, and he’s stupid enough to, he’ll get every country in the Mediterranean on his case and they’ll bomb his Shabeeha bully boys back to the stone age from whence they came.
By the way, Happy Friday, everyone! Time to party into the weekend!
http://viarecta.blogspot.com/2011/10/king-of-all-african-kings-is-hunted.html
November 3rd, 2011, 8:36 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
Yet another big pro-regime rally was held in Tartous city today, Thursday. “Half a million people” were at it according to SANA. http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/11/03/379751.htm That’s a great over-estimate by SANA. But it’s more accurate than the great under-estimate given by the New York Times newspaper, according to which “thousands and perhaps more turned out on Thursday in Tartus”. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/04/world/middleeast/7-killed-in-syria-despite-deal-to-halt-violence.html
Besides that passing mention in the New York Times, very nearly all news media today, in their coverage of Syria, deemed the story of the big pro-regime rally in Tartous to be unworthy of a mention.
Here’s two hours of video footage from today’s rally in Tartous:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IbcPb0tZzQ
Tartous city had a big pro-regime rally on 29 Mar 2011, and several other big ones since. Here’s the video of the one on 29 March: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4zKSwtQxK8 Today’s rally is bigger. Tartous had another big pro-regime rally on 21 Jun 2011 (the day after Bashar’s speech where he said Article 8 was going to be kaput). You can see that one at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrK2_I7gz18 Today’s rally was as big, or bigger. The good people of Tartous are not getting jaded of congregating to uphold the politics that they believe in.
This week we’ve seen in rallies nationwide that Syria’s pro-regime rallies are not having attrition in turnout versus earlier in the year, and in the cities in the eastern part of the country they’ve gotten bigger. Whereas meanwhile, you know, the anti-regime rallies nationwide are indeed having severe attrition in turnout. This is one more piece of concrete evidence that Syria is fine.
The population of Tartous city is a mere 100,000 and yet today’s pro-regime rally in Tartous is clearly at least as big and arguably bigger than any anti-regime rally you can point to anywhere in Syria this year (the biggest anti-regime rallies were in Hama city in late June + early July). This is one more piece of concrete evidence that Syria is fine.
November 3rd, 2011, 9:06 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Did the AL give bashar 15 days ? if it is true then AL must apologize from the syrian people,a murderer and his thugs should not get two days.
Free Syrian army is the best men in the Syrian army,to call them terrorist is to call all revolting syrian terrorist, it is the same things that Gaddafi did, and those who said that will face the same fate of Gaddafi.
November 3rd, 2011, 9:12 pm
jad said:
انتقادات تركية بالجملة لسياسة أنقرة السورية:
لم تفهم التعقيدات.. وقبلت بدور الوكيل لواشنطن
محمد نور الدين
بالكاد تجد من بين الأتراك الذين التقيناهم خلال مؤتمر»منتدى اسطنبول» الذي عقد على مدى يومين من يدافع عن سياسة تركيا تجاه سوريا، أو حتى الإقليمية. القلة التي دافعت مرتبطة عضويا بمؤسسات حزب العدالة والتنمية.
الامتعاض كان اكبر مما توقعناه والسؤال الذي يرتفع على ألسنة الجميع هو لماذا كانت تركيا تجاه سوريا ملكية أكثر من الملك؟ ولماذا ترتفع حدة تصريحات مسؤوليها، ومؤخرا ما خاطب به رئيس الحكومة رجب طيب اردوغان نواب حزبه، مع كل يوم يمر؟ وعندما تنظر إلى المشهد على الأرض تجد أن تركيا تفقد أوراقها وتأثيرها لا لشيء، إلا لأنها ارتضت القيام بدور غير مفهوم وغير مبرر، ويتعارض بالكامل مع كل الشعارات التي طرحتها في سياسات تصفير المشكلات التي تحولت، بتعبير رئيس قسم العلوم السياسية في جامعة الشرق الأوسط التقنية في أنقرة حسين باغجي إلى «صِرف مشكلات»، أي إلى مشكلات في كل مكان. تواجه تركيا المشكلات تحف بها أسئلة تبدأ ولا تنتهي ومع ذلك ليس من يصغي في الدوائر الحاكمة للانتقادات والتحذيرات التي يوجهها «الأقربون» قبل»الأبعدين».
هناك ما يشبه الإجماع في الداخل التركي على أن مشكلة أنقرة الأساسية اليوم أنها تقوم بأدوار أكبر من قدرتها على القيام بها، من دون أن تقوم بحسابات لكل مرحلة. وتكاد ترى أن ما تؤشر إليه يأخذ مكانه للتنفيذ، في حين أنها تفقد تدريجيا أوراقا تنتقل إلى منافسيها.
محور الديموقراطية الذي أعلن عنه وزير الخارجية أحمد داود اوغلو مع مصر يكاد يعني انتقال زمام المبادرة من أنقرة إلى القاهرة، سواء في ملف المصالحة الفلسطينية أو صفقة تبادل الأسرى بين حماس وإسرائيل. واليوم في المبادرة التي تقوم بها جامعة الدول العربية، ومقرها القاهرة، والحوار المفترض بين النظام في سوريا والمعارضة والذي سيكون على الأرجح في القاهرة، فأين تركيا من كل هذا المشهد؟ أليست غائبة وتستدرك نفسها بالجلوس كشاهد فقط بعدما كانت الرائدة في المبادرة؟ ألم تكن قادرة هي دون غيرها في وقت مبكر من اندلاع الاحتجاجات في سوريا على أن تطرح مبادرة واقعية بحكم علاقاتها الجيدة مع الرئيس بشار الأسد والمعارضة في الوقت نفسه؟ أم أنها عادت تعيش في الماضي، وفي أحداث حماه وفي أن بشار هو ابن أبيه؟
وهل ينجح مثل هذا الخطاب «السلفي» بالمعنى السياسي، وغير السياسي، في تحقيق أهداف تركيا التي تطلع على الآخرين بأنه نموذج الدولة السائرة إلى الحداثة والتنمية؟ أم أنها استدرجت إلى ملعب الآخرين فتحولت إلى لاعب يتحرك كما يوجهه مدرب الفريق أو كابتن الفريق الذي هو غالبا الولايات المتحدة؟ هل أخطأت تركيا في الحسابات والرهانات أم أنها وقعت في فخ، وبدلا من أن تضاعف قوتها الإقليمية إذ بها تبدو منعزلة في سياساتها السورية تحديدا، بحيث أن قطر، تلك الإمارة الصغيرة، كانت قادرة على فعل ما لم تستطع تركيا القيام به؟.
وزير الخارجية التركي السابق والأول في عهد حزب العدالة والتنمية في نهاية العام 2002 ومطلع العام 2003 ياشار ياقيش يؤكد أن تركيا لم تفهم جيدا تعقيدات الوضع السوري الداخلي والإقليمي، فذهبت بعيدا في مواقفها بحيث لم تحفظ خط الرجعة. أخطأت في الفهم وفي أسلوب التعامل وفي إملاءات سياسات المهل، وأيضا في أنها أرادت مصادرة أدوار القوى والدول الأخرى مثل مصر والسعودية وسوريا، بحيث تبقى اللاعب الوحيد في الميدان فكان أن خرجت منه بخفي حنين.
وفي العودة إلى كلام الباحث حسين باغجي فإنه يرى أن المشكلة هي في عدم إدراك الفرق بين التنظير والممارسة، حيث أن «الأكاديمي» في شخصية وزير الخارجية أحمد داود اوغلو كانت تتيح له مروحة كبيرة من الافتراضات والتهويمات والسيناريوهات ولا أحد يحاسب. وعندما تحوّل إلى السياسة كانت الأمور مختلفة، وكان لابد أن يواجه الواقع بكل تناقضاته وصراعاته.
ويعطي باغجي، الباحث المرموق، تفسيرا خطيرا للمواقف التركية الأخيرة بالقول إنها ليست ناتجة عن أخطاء بل لأن تركيا غيّرت موقعها فتغير موقفها. إذ مع ضعف الاتحاد الأوروبي والولايات المتحدة بسبب الأزمة المالية وغيرها، كان خيارهما توكيل تركيا بما لا يقدران هما عليه، وهو ما قبلته أنقرة فصارت جزءا من السياسات الغربية في المنطقة. وبالطبع تركيا فعلت ذلك لحسابات تعتقد أنها تفيدها أكثر. فيقول إن القبول التركي كان مرتبطا بهدفين الأول تخفيف الانتقادات الأوروبية لتركيا وهو ما يساهم في تعزيز فرص انضمامها إلى الاتحاد الأوروبي، والثاني هو كسب واشنطن في معركة تركيا ضد حزب العمال الكردستاني، ولا يرتبط هذا التحول بالربيع العربي.
ويقول باغجي إن الغرب يستخدم تركيا أداة في سياساته في الاتجاه الذي يريده. ويشبّه تركيا بطابة التنس حيث اللاعب الأميركي يمسك بالمضرب و«يطجطج» الطابة على المضرب في تصعيد تدريجي إلى أعلى، ومن ثم يقذف بقوة بالطابة إلى الهدف الذي يريده. وسوريا كانت أحد الأهداف الأساسية في إطار استخدام الغرب للطابة التركية.
ولا تبتعد الكاتبة المشاكسة نوراي ميرت عن نظرة باغيش إلى الأمور، فتقول إن حزب العدالة والتنمية لا يريد أن يفرط بإنجازه الأكبر أمام المواطن التركي، وهو النمو الاقتصادي، الذي في أساسه العلاقات الاقتصادية مع أوروبا والغرب، لذلك فهو ينسجم في سياساته مع الغرب وأوروبا، وقد ترجم ذلك في سياسات متماهية بالكامل مع الغرب في ليبيا وسوريا. ولكن نوراي تحذر من تصاعد نبرة الخطاب القومي المحافظ المتشدد لحزب العدالة والتنمية، ما يتعارض مع سياسات تصفير المشكلات وإقامة علاقات حسنة مع الجوار.
وتقول نوراي إن واشنطن تريد صداما تركيا مع سوريا وإيران، وهي تضغط على أنقرة لإثارة ردود فعل إيرانية مثل نشر الدرع الصاروخي. وترى الباحثة أن الإيرانيين كانوا أعقل من الأتراك عندما رفضوا أن يتورطوا في دعم حزب العمال الكردستاني لأنهم لا يريدون تخريب العلاقات مع تركيا وفق ما يريده الأميركيون.
وترى الباحثة أن تصعيد «الكردستاني» لعملياته جاء لاستغلال التوترات الإقليمية لتحصيل مكاسب للأكراد في الداخل التركي، وليس بالضرورة جراء تحريض خارجي، خصوصا أن مخاطر مثل هذا الدعم على الدول المحيطة بتركيا ولا سيما سوريا كبيرة.
ولا تجد ميرت أية واقعية في الرهان على الورقة العلوية لإضعاف تركيا من الداخل، لأن الهم العلوي التركي الأساسي ليس سوريا أو غيرها بل كيفية الحفاظ على النظام العلماني الذي هو ضمانتهم. وتورد الباحثة رقما لافتا، وهو أن غالبية الجعفريين (الاسم الذي يطلق في تركيا على الشيعة الاثني عشرية) لم يصوّتوا لحزب العدالة والتنمية، رغم أن رئيس الحكومة رجب طيب اردوغان قد شارك للمرة الأولى السنة الماضية في مراسم العاشر من محرّم في اسطنبول. بل صوّتوا لحزب الشعب الجمهوري العلماني وحزب الحركة القومية المتشدد.
ويرى الكاتب المعروف محمد علي بيراند انه تبين لتركيا بعد أسابيع على بدء الأحداث في سوريا أن الأسد كان جوزة قاسية وصلبة أكثر مما كانت تعتقد تركيا. ويقول إن سياسات التخويف التركية من الوضع في سوريا والصدام المذهبي وموجات الهجرة لم يكن لها أساس ولا يمكن فهمها. وأشار إلى أن سوريا ليست لقمة سائغة سهلة على البلع. ويقول إن أنقرة إما أنها قد أخطأت في سياستها السورية أو أنها لم تعد قادرة على القيام بخطوة تراجعية فوجدت نفسها في المأزق.
وينفي بولنت أراس، مدير مركز الدراسات الإستراتيجية (سام) التابع لوزارة الخارجية والذي يدور في فلك حزب العدالة والتنمية، أن يكون في نيّة تركيا القيام بأي عمل عسكري ضد سوريا بمفردها. ويقول إن ذلك مرتبط بصدور قرار إما عن الأمم المتحدة أو عن حلف شمال الأطلسي وهو ما لا يُرى في المستقبل المنظور. وقال إن الحديث عن تدريب تركيا لمجموعات من الجيش السوري وتسهيل الحماية لهم لا أساس له وما نشرته صحيفة «نيويورك تايمز» بهذا الصدد يدخل في باب «خبريّات» سائقي الشاحنات العابرة للحدود!.
اوزديم صانبيرك، العضو التركي في لجنة «بالمر» التي شكلها الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة للتحقيق في العدوان على «أسطول الحرية» كشف بعض التفاصيل والملابسات المتعلقة بالتقرير، وهو أن إسرائيل هي التي سربت التقرير إلى «نيويورك تايمز» وهو لم يوقع من تركيا لأنه لم يكن في الأصل نهائيا، بل مجرد مسودة كانت تخضع للتعديل والإضافة وما إلى ذلك.
ورغم أن التقرير لم يطلب من إسرائيل الاعتذار من تركيا ويعتبر الحصار على غزة مشروعا يقلل صانبيرك من أهمية ذلك لأنه غير موقّع، كما انه لا قوة قانونية دولية له، إذ انه تقرير «لجنة خاصة» شكلها الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة بان كي مون ولم يدرج التقرير في وثائق الأمم المتحدة أي كأنه غير موجود. ويقول انه ليس التقرير النهائي فهناك أكثر من صيغة كانت تبحث.
ومع ذلك يرى صانبيرك أن التقرير حتى في الصيغة التي سربت إلى «نيويورك تايمز» يضمن إدانة لسلوك الجنود الإسرائيليين وطريقة استخدامهم المفرط للقوة، لكن تركيا لم تستفد من هذه التفصيلات لرفع دعاوى والتشهير بإسرائيل.
http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=1996&ChannelId=47249&ArticleId=483&Author=%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF%20%D9%86%D9%88%D8%B1%20%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%86
November 3rd, 2011, 9:22 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
@ Dale or could be Revlon,
Assad has enough WMD stockpiled to wipe planet earth population several times over. Don’t bet that the Alawites when they are cornered they will just do a coward Gaddafi surrender and handed all over to NATO, they will handed over alright, but to those that you do not wanted to ever have.
If you think that NATO planes going to bomb Syria, you live in fantasy land. In Fact ya-all desperado wannabe live in it already, and that is why you are going anywhere in real world. It has been stinking 9 months now and you have not moved one damm inch forward. Just what makes you think that the next nine months when the world economies will be tumbling is going to be any different? Do you think by then Europe will have a need to risk Middle East oil resources blown up and to add an additional $300 pbl for crude prices, they cannot afford $90 man.
Those Mediterranean dumps you are calling countries in few months will be busy dealing with locking own angry citizens up and averting mass revolutions. They are of no concern at all to Assad. Just because they are going Bankrupt and broke, decided to go to Libya to commit the normal genocides they are so good at to fleece few hundred billion from Ghaddafi, rob Libya of its wealth and gold, they are not going to risk losing it all for some unholy Moslem Syrian ass, who could not get in nine month anybody in Syria on his side. One wrong move in Syria and it is Armageddon no matter who starts it, Assad, or whoever comes after him, just bet on it being so, a sore for all nations to suffer from the mess.
As to “having a Party”, SNP was in existence before you born, we are actually on our way out of exile and into retirement and into Syria to starts a youthful SNP, with the exact ideology, except more extremist to fit this coming age of extreme warfare. And will make sure that no filthy whatever is allowed in Syria. Keep on living in other Mediterranean countries you are so proudly relying on in Europe, where you will by that time, be chased by few million buddies of ours we have trained well to deal with your kind, with shiny hairless skulls, chasing you and screaming: brownies go to hell, out of Europe stinky Moslem. LOL, you are going to have it man, they are so dam angry, primed and prepped, one incident and voila, hide in cellars buddies, you will be walking with Revlon white powder face puffs and Revlon 502 Blond dye just like the Iraqi male did in Sweden after 911. Dare to have your harim in hijab then. Hey, it is all coming to your neighborhood soon. The sad part about these worthless idiotic Syrians wannabe revolutionaries that are not going anywhere is that, they are all dam STUPID, but not as much as those training and funding them.
November 3rd, 2011, 9:27 pm
Ghufran said:
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
وَاعْتَصِمُوا بِحَبْلِ اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلا تَفَرَّقُوا وَاذْكُرُوا نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ كُنْتُمْ أَعْدَاءً فَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ فَأَصْبَحْتُمْ بِنِعْمَتِهِ إِخْوَانًا وَكُنْتُمْ عَلَى شَفَا حُفْرَةٍ مِنَ النَّارِ فَأَنْقَذَكُمْ مِنْهَا كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ آيَاتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ
November 3rd, 2011, 10:01 pm
Ghufran said:
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
وَإِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا فَإِنْ بَغَتْ إِحْدَاهُمَا عَلَى الأُخْرَى فَقَاتِلُوا الَّتِي تَبْغِي حَتَّى تَفِيءَ إِلَى أَمْرِ اللَّهِ فَإِنْ فَاءَتْ فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا بِالْعَدْلِ وَأَقْسِطُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الْمُقْسِطِينَ
November 3rd, 2011, 10:06 pm
ann said:
Turkey’s leading opposition party shocked by Ankara’s U-turn toward Damascus
http://www.arabmonitor.info/news/dettaglio.php?idnews=35110&lang=en
Ankara, 3 November – Turkey’s main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), is warning against the dangerous U-turn in Turkish foreign policy that is about to be taken by the ruling Justice and Development (AKP) party. In talks to the daily Hürriyet, CHP deputy Birgül Ayman Güler denounced the “plot about democracy and liberty” staged by the West in order to pave the way for an invasion of Syria. Underscoring that she and her party were by no means uncritical supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government, Güler warned against participating in a plot to invade Syria, which would result in the killing of thousands.
Commenting on Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s recent exclamation of praise for the allegedly “glorious resistance” in Syria , Güler said she and the delegation of women of the CHP, who had been in Syria for a five-day visit over the weekend, had never encountered any “resistance”. The CHP ladies’ delegation, along with representatives of the Workers’ Party (IP), the Labour Party (EMP), the Turkish Women’s Union, the Republican Women’s Association and other Turkish women’s organization had been invited by the General Union of Syrian Women. On their tour to Aleppo, Ladhaqiya and Damascus the Turkish ladies’ delegation met with Syrian Vice President Naja al-Attar, the Grand Mufti of Syria, Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, whose son had been killed a month ago, and with Majida Qteit, the Chairwoman of the General Union of Syrian Women. Güler complained that until six months ago Turkey had very good and steadily improving relations with Syria. Now, all the major Syrian figures the Turkish ladies’ delegation encountered expressed their astonishment and disappointment over the sudden U-turn the Turkish government is taking, after it had already began talks about removing the borders and enhancing cooperation.
Güler stressed toward Hürriyet that her party does by no means uncritically support all the policies of the current Syrian government, but warned: “If you say ‘al-Assad is a bad statesman, that’s why foreign intervention is a must,’ I’m against it. I did not think highly of Gadhafi in Libya, but look at the post-Gadhafi era. The first thing they’ve done is to allow marrying with four women. They said, ‘Democracy and liberty would come,’ but an unacceptable reactionary has come. I’m complaining about anti-democratic actions of the Justice and Development Party (AKP). But if there were a foreign intervention to overthrow the AKP, I would be the first to defend it. Democracy never comes with foreign intervention”.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:09 pm
Ghufran said:
وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِناً مُتَعَمِّداً فَجَزَاؤُهُ جَهَنَّمُ خَالِداً فِيهَا وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَلَعَنَهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ عَذَاباً عَظِيما
قال تعالى: (( وَمَنْ يَقْتُلْ مُؤْمِناً مُتَعَمِّداً فَجَزَاؤُهُ جَهَنَّمُ خَالِداً فِيهَا وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَلَعَنَهُ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُ عَذَاباً عَظِيما ً)) .
إن مجرد حمل السلاح على المسلمين أمرٌ محرم في الدين الإسلامي كما قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: «من حمل علينا السلاح فليس منا» فكيف بمن قتل مسلماً آمناً دون أي ذنب وقد قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: «فإن دماءكم وأموالكم وأعراضكم حرام عليكم كحرمة يومكم هذا في شهركم هذا في بلدكم هذا». وكما حرم الإسلام قتل المسلمين في البلاد الإسلامية فقد حرم قتل غير المسلمين الذين لهم عهد عند المسلمين حيث قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: «من قتل معاهداً لم يرح رائحة الجنة» .
لقد اجمع العلماء على أن قتل الأبرياء سواء كانوا من رجال الأمن أو غيرهم من المدنيين هو أمرٌ محرم .. ومرتكب هذه الجريمة سوف يُسأل أمام الله تعالى يوم القيامة عن هذه الجريمة ويحاسب عليها لأن حقوق الناس لا تسقط يوم القيامة، إضافة إلى وجوب القصاص من القاتل إذا طالب أولياء المقتول بالقصاص منه. وذلك لأن الأصل هو براءة الذمة للمسلم وعدم جواز قتله إلا إذا ارتكب ما يوجب قتله فيقيم ولي الأمر عليه الحد أو القصاص كما هو معلوم عند أهل العلم وقد حذر النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم من قتل المعصومين فقال: «لا يزال المؤمن مُعَنقاً صالحاً ما لم يصب دماً حراماً». وقال صلى الله عليه وسلم: «أول ما يقضى بين الناس يوم القيامة في الدماء». قال الإمام النووي رحمه الله: «فيه تغليظ أمر الدماء وأنها أول ما يقضى فيه بين الناس يوم القيامة وهذا لعظم أمرها وكثير خطرها». وقال ابن حجر رحمه الله: «وفي الحديث عظم أمر الدم، فإن البداءة إنما تكون بالأهم، والذنب يعظم بحسب عظم المفسدة وتفويت المصلحة وإعدام البنية الإنسانية غاية في ذلك».
November 3rd, 2011, 10:12 pm
Uzair8 said:
Police-state regime’s attempt to crush uprising enters day 233.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:16 pm
bronco said:
#180 Jad
It’s so sad to read about these people who are in such a dramatic situation.
If the FSA fails, these poor soldiers could be judged in a court martial for treason. They better not fail or prepare a plan B to settle in Turkey unless there is an amnesty for them as part of the AL plan.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:17 pm
ann said:
US-Iran conflicts could intensify – 2011-11-04
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2011-11/04/content_14035116.htm
Tension between the United States and Iran is intensifying despite signs, however weak it may be, of negotiations.
On Tuesday, the Iranian government said it had written to the US seeking an apology for alleging that Iran backed a plot to assassinate Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the US on American soil. Teheran’s riposte was in response to a letter from Washington offering talks.
Last month, the US said that Manssor Arbabsayara, a 56-year-old US citizen holding both Iranian and US passports, and Gholam Shakuri, a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, were charged with sponsoring and promoting terrorism, including plotting to assassinate the Saudi ambassador. Arbabsayara was arrested in the US, while Shakuri remains presumably in Iran.
The US quickly waged press and diplomacy “wars” against Iran to win the international community’s support for its “cause”, while Teheran fought back saying Washington’s allegation was an “evil plot” aimed at isolating Iran.
We don’t know which side is lying. But it is apparent that the US is sensationalizing the allegation with a motive. Washington’s political intention behind the move is clear, too, considering the complicated situation in the Middle East.
The US and its Western allies got deeply involved in the political storm that began sweeping across countries in North Africa and the Middle East earlier this year. But Iran, an eyesore for the US, has emerged almost unscathed. Besides, the West thinks Iran used the precious opportunities to “develop its nuclear and missile programs”, and make huge profits from rising oil prices during the Libya civil war.
Moreover, the political changes in the Middle East and North Africa, such as the stepping down of pro-US leader Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, will change the majority of Arabian countries’ attitudes toward the US and Israel. Israel already seems to be isolated in the Middle East and even faces further confrontation from other countries in the region, which will eventually abate the US’ influence in the region. And contrary to US politicians’ expectations, Iran became the biggest winner of “Arab Spring”.
No wonder, the US chose the “assassination plot” – a most suitable case – to demonize Iran. Given Iranian intelligence agencies’ record of having formerly assassinated hostile individuals abroad, and that Adel al Jubeir, the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the US, is antagonistic to Iran, Washington thought it would be easy to gain support of American as well as international public if it portrayed Teheran as an Al-Qaida-like group that plots terrorist attacks on US soil.
Another objective of the US was to set Iran and Saudi Arabia at loggerheads. For long, the two countries have had disputes but no actual conflict. Even after Saudi troops entered Bahrain to help crack down on protesters, Iran maintained restraint. It seems that Iran doesn’t want a face-off with Saudi Arabia yet.
The allegations of the terror plot have driven a wedge between the two countries – Saudi Arabia has thanked the US for preventing the attack, while its officials and their US counterparts are considering sanctions and other punitive measures against Iran. In fact, the roots of the intensified conflict between Iran and the US lies in their power struggle in the Middle East.
The West thinks Iran, as a regional power, wants to challenge the US’ hegemony in the region and, hence, keeps developing its military capacity by projecting its power to neighboring countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Palestine to diminish, rather end, the US’ influence in the Persian Gulf and the Middle East.
The US expects to not only prevent Iran from becoming a regional power, but also to overthrow its Islamic regime if possible. One of the US’ tactics is to mobilize the international community to pressurize Iran by making use of its nuclear issue.
Since the outbreak of “Arab Spring” earlier this year, the US and Iran both have tried to guide the movement to suit their own interests.
The intention behind what the US has done – abandoning Tunisian leader Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali, Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak and Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, helping hunt down Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi, supporting Bahrain to stabilize, and pressurizing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad – is actually aimed at strengthening its strategic role in the region and reducing the adverse impact on Israel rather than “promoting democracy in Greater Middle East”. One of the US’ important goals is to extend the anti-government wave to Iran and Syria.
Iran, on its part, is making efforts to direct the Arab movement to the West by encouraging Arabian countries, under the slogan of “Islamic awakening”, to oppose the US and Israel and support Syria.
The US and Iran are actually competing for the dominant role in the Middle East. For the past 30 years, or since the establishment of Islamic regime in Iran in 1979, the cold war between Washington and Teheran has seen no let up. So Washington’s allegation against Teheran for plotting the Saudi ambassador’s assassination is a prelude to tougher US actions against Iran. And with the situation in Syria intensifying, the US and Iran are likely to prick each other more furiously in the future.
The author is a researcher at the Strategy Research Center of China International Studies Research Fund and China’s former ambassador to Iran.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:18 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Bronco
FSA will win,
Ghufran
AL initiative is doing what Islam says
November 3rd, 2011, 10:26 pm
Jad said:
Bronco,
I agree there should be a solution for them an amnesty for soldiers who didn’t kill civilians and if the regime is seriouse to solve the problem it can declare an amnesty on the deffected soldier who decide to put his gun down.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:28 pm
Ghufran said:
ردود فعل المعارضه
عواصم..
تنتظر معظم رموز المعارضة السورية بدء تطبيق الاتفاق الذي أُبرم بين سوريا ولجنة الجامعة العربية، أول من أمس، حتى تبني على الشيء مقتضاه وتكون قادرة على التعليق رسمياً على التجاوب معه أو رفض الحوار مع دمشق. لكن المجلس الوطني حسم قراره برفض الحوار، في وقت أبدت بعض أسماء من “معارضة الداخل” الذين لا يرفضون مبدئياً التفاوض مع النظام، تشكّكاً بجدوى الاتفاق
تفاوتت تعليقات المعارضة السورية بمختلف أطيافها، في الداخل والخارج، على الاتفاق السوري ــ العربي حول خطة لحل الأزمة، مع تشابُه في ما بينها حيال نقاط مركزية: الشكّ والحذر بالتزام النظام تطبيق الاتفاق واجب، لكن دون رفض الاتفاق من أساسه. وقد وصف المعارض السوري البارز ميشيل كيلو، في اتصال من باريس مع صحيفة الأخبار، الموافقة السورية على الخطة العربية بأنها خطوة مهمة جداً ومن شأنها أن تبعد النظام عن الحل الأمني، بالتالي يجب التعاطي معها من هذا المنطلق. وفيما ذكّر بأن الاقتراحات العربية سبق لنا أن اقترحناها نحن في المعارضة على النظام منذ بداية الأزمة تحت عنوان البيئة التفاوضية، ورفضَها في حينها، فإنه يتوقف “عند حصول شيء كبير جداً دفع بدمشق إلى الموافقة على الشروط العربية وشروط المعارضة بعدما كانت رافضة للاتفاق”. وبينما يرفض الافصاح عن نوعية هذا “التطور الكبير” الذي قد يكون له علاقة “بإيصال كلام للقيادة السورية عن ما بعد مبادرة الجامعة العربية إذا رُفضت”، إلا أنه يعوّل على نقطة يراها شديدة الأهمية، وهي أن “تلتزم كل أطراف النظام ببنود الاتفاق”. وردّاً على سؤال يتعلق بما إذا كانت التطورات الميدانية ليوم أمس توحي بأن الحل الأمني لا يزال سارياً، يرى كيلو أنه، رغم “عدم اختلاف التعاطي الأمني” ليوم أمس في المدن السورية، وفي حمص تحديداً، “إلا أنه لا يزال الوقت مبكراً لكي يختلف التعاطي الأمني، بما أنّ الأمر يحتاج إلى يومين أو ثلاثة ليظهر التجاوب الرسمي من عدمه”، مع إصراره على أنه لا يبرّر بهذا الكلام استمرار السلوك الأمني للسلطات السورية. وعن تقديره بشأن نية دمشق الالتزام بالاتفاق العربي من عدمه، يستبعد كيلو أن تكون موافقة النظام على شروط المعارضة والعرب “مجرّد خطوة تكتيكية أو شراء للوقت، لأنه حتى ولو كانت كذلك، فسيكون صعباً جداً عليه التراجع عنها، وقد يعني تراجعه عن موافقته على الاقتراحات العربية نهايته حتى”.
ورغم هذا التفاؤل النسبي من كيلو بالموافقة السورية على المبادرة العربية، فإنّ المعارض المخضرم يشدّد على أنّ الاعلان السوري الرسمي عن قرب تأليف لجنة الحوار الوطني، هي خطوة “تشكّك في جدية النظام، لأن هذه اللجنة إن شُكِّلَت، لن يكون لها موقع من الاعراب إذا كان هناك نية حقيقية في التحاور مع المعارضة”. ويبرر رأيه بأن “لجنة الحوار وفكرتها وُلدت أساساً منذ بداية الأحداث للتغطية على عدم رغبة النظام بالتحاور مع المعارضة، وإذا كان هذا الحوار سيجري فعلاً، فإنّ النظام سيكون طرفاً وليس ممثَّلاً بلجنة تضمّ من شاركوا في المؤتمر التشاوري وحوار المحافظات…”
التنسيقيّات: اختبار الجديّة بتصعيد التظاهر
في غضون ذلك، صدر بيان عن “لجان التنسيق المحلية” الناشطة ميدانياً، ورحّبت فيه “بمواصلة اللجنة الوزارية العربية جهودها الرامية إلى حقن دماء السوريين وحمايتهم من رصاص أمن وجيش وشبيحة النظام”. وفيما شكك بيان “التنسيقيات” في جدية موافقة النظام على المبادرة العربية، فإنه دعا السوريين إلى “التحقق من نواياه وإفساح المجال أمام الحوار، وذلك من خلال الاستمرار في أشكال الاحتجاج كافة
. وحثّ البيان على “التعبير عن حقيقة مواقفهم عبر الانضمام إلى الثوار السلميين المتظاهرين في المدن السورية”، ابتداءً من اليوم (الجمعة) “للتظاهر في كل الساحات والشوارع، ومواصلة الكفاح اللاعنفي حتى إسقاط النظام”.
غليون: فرصة لتعديل ميزان القوى
بدوره، اختصر القيادي الأبرز في “المجلس الوطني السوري” برهان غليون، تقويمه للاتفاق السوري العربي، ببيان نشره على صفحته على موقع “فايسبوك”، وقال فيه إن قبول النظام بالمبادرة العربية “ناجم عن الخوف الذي استبدّ به نتيجة العزلة العربية والدولية”، من دون أن يعرب عن ثقته بأن دمشق ستحترم بنود المبادرة. وفيما توقّع غليون أن يسعى النظام إلى استعادة المبادرة “بالالتفاف على الالتزامات المطلوبة وباللعب على تناقضات المعارضة”، فقد جدّد التشديد على أن الهدف يبقى إسقاط النظام، داعياً إلى استغلال فرصة المبادرة “من أجل تغيير ميزان القوى لصالح الثورة والثوار”. من أجل ذلك، حث غليون على النظر إلى المبادرة “كهدنة لا كأساس للحل، ولتحقيق ما منعنا الرصاص من تحقيقه حتى الآن، أي توسيع قاعدة المسيرات السلمية. هذا هو أملنا في أن لا يستغل النظام الهدنة لتحسين مواقعه”.
في غضون ذلك، كان الامين العام للجامعة العربية نبيل العربي يلتقي وفداً من المكتب التنفيذي للمجلس الوطني السوري، الذي أصدر بياناً بعد الاجتماع أعلن التزامه بـ”المطالب الشعبية والثورية التي تشدِّد على رفض الحوار مع النظام وإسقاطه بكافة رموزه، وأن أي عملية سياسية يمكن أن تتبناها الجامعة يجب أن تركز على ضمان انتقال السلطة إلى حكومة تمثل الشعب “. وأضاف “أن النظام ما زال يقوم بارتكاب إنتهكات فظيعة برغم التزامه بتطبيق مبادرة جامعة الجول العربية، وكان آخرها سقوط عدد من الشهداء في حمص وعمليات الاعتقال والمداهمة في عدة مدن من بينها حماة ودرعا”.
وأشار المجلس أن الأمين العام للجامعة العربية قال “إن المجلس الوطني السوري بات اليوم طرفاً أصيلاً بالمعادلة الاقليمية والدولية الخاصة بالقضية السورية، وأنه سيقوم بنقل وجهات نظر المجلس إلى الدول الأعضاء بالجامعة”. وأضاف “ان العربي قدَّم عرضاً لمجريات الاجتماع الأخير لمجلس الوزراء العرب الخاص بالقضية السورية، وتأكيد الدول الأعضاء في الجامعة على ممارسة كافة الضغوط التي ترغم النظام السوري على تطبيق بنود المبادرة العربية، ومنها إرسال مراقبين عرب والسماح لوسائل الإعلام بالتغطية الحرة للأحداث والتظاهرات”.
العودات متشائم
في المقابل، لم يبدِ عضو “هيئة التنسيق الوطنية لقوى التغيير الديموقراطي” حسين العودات تفاؤلاً يذكر بخصوص التفاهم الأخير من ناحية تجاوب النظام مع مجمل بنود الاتفاقية. وقال العودات لـصحيفة الأخبار: أستبعد أن يتحقق شيء من مجمل بنود الاتفاقية العربية على أرض الواقع، مع أنني أتمنى الخروج من الأزمة بسرعة حقناً لدماء السوريين. وعن أسباب تشاؤمه، أشار إلى أنه” يصعب على السلطة السورية ومختلف أجهزتها الأمنية وقف العمليات الأمنية وسحب الجيش وإيقاف عملياته العسكرية دفعة واحدة، لأن هذا سيؤدي بالضرورة إلى تضاعف عدد المتظاهرين في الشارع”. سجّل العودات ملاحظته في ما يتعلق ببند الحوار الوطني، لأن الاتفاق “لم يقدم صورة واضحة عن مفهوم الحوار الوطني ولا عن هوية أطراف هذا الحوار وبنوده، وما إذا كان سيتمحور حول الانتقال في النظام السوري نحو الديموقراطية والحرية والتعددية السياسية؟”. كذلك رفض الربط بين ما يُشاع في الشارع السوري الموالي حول مبادرة جامعة الدول العربية، وبين مخططات سياسية خارجية للدول الغربية التي تريد النيل من السيادة السورية، معتبراً أنّ “الكرة الآن في ملعب النظام، لكن إذا لم يصر إلى التعامل مع هذه المبادرة بإيجابية، فربما سنشهد استعانة جامعة الدول العربية بمجلس الأمن الدولي”.
بدوره، لفت المعارض لؤي حسين، عضو “تيار بناء الدولة” الوليد حديثاً، إلى ردود الفعل الأولية التي وصلته حول المبادرة العربية، كاشفاً أن “الجيش السوري الحر” المنشق عن الجيش النظامي “أوقف جميع عملياته، كما أخبرتني العديد من لجان التنسيق المحلية للثورة السورية”. وعن قراءته لجملة بنود وتفاصيل المبادرة العربية، توقع أن “تتعثّر المبادرة العربية أكثر من مرة، لكن على محبّي هذا الوطن أن يدفعوا بها نحو الأمام حتى نتمكن من حقن الدماء السورية». وبالنسبة إلى الحوار المزمع تنظيمه، أينما كان مكان انعقاده، فيرى حسين أنه “ليس مهماً الآن، بقدر أهمية تنفيذ بنود الاتفاقية العربية بداية بإيقاف عمليات القمع وقفاً كاملاً، وإطلاق سراح جميع معتقلي التظاهرات السلمية”. ويشدد على أهمية تأليف “مجلس وطني انتقالي، على أن تُختار أسماء هذا المجلس بنحو عقلاني، وصولاً إلى انتخابات ديموقراطية حرة” ورداً على سؤال حول بند إطلاق سراح جميع المعتقلين السياسيين الذين اعتقلوا على خلفية الأحداث في الاشهر الثمانية الأخيرة، أعرب حسين عن اعتقاده بأن “النظام وأجهزته الأمنية المختلفة لم تعد قادرة على التلاعب في هذه المسألة رغم أن الاعتقالات لا تزال مستمرة حتى الساعة، وعلينا تحذير النظام من استمرار هذه الممارسات”. أما إذا لم تنجح المبادرة العربية في إيقاف العنف والخروج من الأزمة، فـ”سنُبقي على نشاطنا السياسي السلمي الذي التزمنا به منذ أكثر من 30 عاماً، حتى تتحقق جميع مطالبنا المشروعة”، على حد تعبيره.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:30 pm
bronco said:
Tara #183
“20 people were killed in Homs today and 2000 were arrested from Damascus suburbs today as per the LCC.”
Civilians or soldiers?
It has been reported that more soldiers then civilians are being killed.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:31 pm
bronco said:
#182
Do you mean that everyone in the SNC has a different response to the question whether they will join the dialog or not?.
In any case if the SNC is expecting an ‘official’ invitation from the AL, they will wait a long time. The Al has totally ignored them, and their demands were not even considered.
Do you support the FSA, or the SNC? I am confused as these two are not recognizing each others?
November 3rd, 2011, 10:39 pm
zoo said:
Qatar’s diplomatic dynamism
Tony Badran, November 3, 2011 share
In the entire drama of the negotiation between the Arab League and Bashar al-Assad’s regime over the crisis in Syria, perhaps most intriguing has been Qatar’s maneuvering. While the US posture on Syria has left a leadership vacuum, and Iran has issued threats against any attempts to dislodge Assad, Qatar has sought to carve out a middle path. Still, the Qataris have shown a diplomatic dynamism, in keeping with their direct engagement with the Arab uprisings, while they have also operated within Iran’s red lines.
When it comes to the Syrian revolution, Doha has been the most publicly active Arab capital. Previously a close of ally of Assad, Qatar quickly became the target of the Syrian regime’s bile due to its positions on the popular uprising and the coverage it was providing on its influential Al Jazeera satellite station. Qatar also became the first Arab country to withdraw its ambassador from Damascus.
…
To read more: http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=329004&MID=0&PID=0#ixzz1chX7dqLd
In the end, the result of the Arab League’s initiative remains unclear. Is it an attempt to give Assad more room to maneuver, or is it an attempt to stop his killing machine? As far as Qatar is concerned, ambiguity may actually be desirable, allowing it to triangulate between Iran and the US. As far as Washington’s interests are concerned, however, the episode represents yet another failure of US diplomacy.
November 3rd, 2011, 10:52 pm
zoo said:
How Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood will win
Posted By Shadi Hamid Thursday, November 3, 2011 – 1:00 PM
The performance of the Islamist party Ennahda in the October 23 Tunisian elections, in which it won 41.5 percent of the seats, has refocused attention on the upcoming Egyptian elections scheduled to begin on November 28. Some analysts have minimized the Muslim Brotherhood’s prospects for success by pointing to polls suggesting that the group — the largest and best organized in Egypt — hovers between 15 to 30 percent approval. It may be true that the Brotherhood isn’t as popular as we might think. But elections aren’t popularity contests. In fact, as the campaign unfolds, it appears likely that Egypt’s Islamists will do even better than expected, just like their Tunisian counterparts.
http://mideast.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2011/11/03/how_the_muslim_brotherhood_will_win
November 3rd, 2011, 10:58 pm
ann said:
khaled oweiss is a card carrying member of the islamist terrorist gang of muslim brother-hood
November 3rd, 2011, 11:13 pm
Norman said:
There is nothing wrong with the MB reaching power as long as they will leave when they fail and voted out, the question is how sure can we be that they will leave, we just have to see, having a strong army that can guarantee free and fair election is what is needed, i would love to see how they would lead their countries and how they would deal with the problems that the Arab counties are facing,
November 3rd, 2011, 11:17 pm
jna said:
I don’t think that Syrian security and the army can leave the people undefended from these terror elements. How could they? Will opposition also enforce a ceasefire? Can they?
People of Homs Denounce Armed Terrorist Groups’ Crimes
Nov 04, 2011
HOMS, (SANA) – People of Homs city denounced on Thursday the armed terrorist groups’ crimes of murder and mutilation, stressing that the practices of those groups are linked to foreign agendas which target the stability of Syria.
People of Homs called on provocative satellite channels to relay the reality of the armed terrorist groups’ practices.
In an interview with the Syrian TV, citizens from Homs called for working hand in hand against those armed groups, wondering what the workers who went out in search of their livelihood did to deserve being murdered brutally by the armed terrorist groups.
Son of Martyr Elian Darwish, Ghiath Darwish, said that while his father was on a bus, an armed terrorist group blocked the road and forced the passengers to leave the bus and killed them randomly and mutilated their bodies.
A survivor of the massacre, Ikhlas Ashour, said, “After we finished work in the city, we took the bus as usual to go back home. We were three women and twelve young men.”
She went on saying that an armed group of 5 people blocked their way and requested the passengers’ IDs, and within seconds they got on the bus and took the passengers’ mobile phones, asking them to huddle together while an armed man put his gun to the driver’s head and the other armed men surrounded them from all sides.
Ashour added that after the armed men drove the bus for around 2 kilometers off the main road, they let the passengers off the bus and took their money and IDs and killed all the men. http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/11/04/379876.htm
November 3rd, 2011, 11:33 pm
Ghufran said:
أبعاد الانبعاص التركي من انبعاث المبادره العربيه
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today%5C03qpt956.htm&arc=data%5C2011%5C11%5C11-03%5C03qpt956.htm
November 3rd, 2011, 11:41 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Bronco
The FSA is a military wing,I fully support it and admire the FSA,they are groups of patriotic people similar to angels.The SNC is newly formed political entity,they are different and seperate from FSA ,I am sure they are communicating,God Bless both.
The Snc has not been recognized by AL, but the discussion of dialogue is just too early the criminal regime will continue the killing and will not comply by the agreement and dialogue is the fivth stage, we may never get to it.
All members of SNC is saying that they will listen to the people on the street of Syria, those are saying no dialogue,they dont trust this regime,Who does?, that is why that some say no.
November 4th, 2011, 12:15 am
syria no kandahar said:
Revlon,Majed and Tara and all other terrorists supporters
watch Louai link 189,then look at the mirror and spit at what you see.
November 4th, 2011, 12:21 am
jad said:
Dear Bronco,
I owe you an explanation of my rigid opinion against the FSA and why I take them as a threat to Syria as an entity.
I understand your opinion from the humanitarian point of view, however, in politics and when a country is going to be lost because of emotion then we have no choice but to push that aside.
The FSA members are used either by their knowledge or by their ignorance as the main ingredient for a civil war scenario in Syria that will be long and costly in human lost and may even escalate to a regional war, on top of that the outcome is not guaranteed at all, actually studies show that most of these armed struggle go in the wrong direction.
Please read this excellent mini study/research by one of the best known researcher in the world on the nonviolent resistance, writing specifically about the FSA and the outcome of this dangerous phenomena to better understand my point.
She tried really hard to be very optimistic in her case study however, you can read her message clear between the lines, STICK TO THE CIVILIAN NONVIOLENCE METHODS.
How Important is Turkey’s Support of the Free Syrian Army?
by ERICA CHENOWETH
http://themonkeycage.org/blog/2011/10/30/how-important-is-turkey%E2%80%99s-support-of-the-free-syrian-army/
November 4th, 2011, 12:21 am
majedkhaldoun said:
SNK
is that what you do?
November 4th, 2011, 12:30 am
jad said:
Dear SNK,
Those victims in Louai’s link aren’t worth to mention, they only write about the victims of the regime violence but god forbid they mention the victims of the terrorist violence it’s too much for the ‘high moral’ gangs to show humanity when it comes to ‘peasants’ so please don’t waste your words on those.
November 4th, 2011, 12:38 am
majedkhaldoun said:
The free syrian army will increase in number in the future, the regime will be surprised.
November 4th, 2011, 12:39 am
ann said:
Syria: Arab Yugoslavia of ME – Friday, November 04, 2011
Nicola Nasser
http://pakobserver.net/detailnews.asp?id=123357
Surrounded by the Turkish veteran member of NATO in the north, the Israeli NATO partner and the navy fleets of the member states patrolling the Mediterranean in the west, the alliance’s Jordanian partner in the south, and in the east hosting a NATO mission in Iraq, which is expected to develop into the 12th Arab partner, and lonely swimming in a sea of the Arab and Israel strategic allies of the United States, the Syrian regime of President Bashar al-Assad stands as the Yugoslavia of the Middle East, that has to join the expansion southward of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as well as the “new world order” engineered by the U.S. unipolar power, kicked out as the odd regional number, or join Iraq and Libya in being bombed down to the medieval ages.
Following its latest military success in opening the Libyan gate to Africa, the U.S. – led NATO seems about to recruit its 13th Arab “partner,” thus paving the way for the United States to move its Africom HQ from Germany to the continent after removing the Gaddafi regime, which opposed both this move and the French – led Mediterranean Union (MU), a removal that is in itself, for all realpolitic reasons, a threatening warning to the neighboring Algeria to soften its opposition to both Africa hosting Africom and NATO expanding southward and to drop off whatever reservations it still has to the revival of the MU, which lost its Egyptian co-chair with President Nicolas Sarkozy with the removal of former president Hosni Mubarak from power in Cairo.
The U.S. and NATO are poised now to shift focus from Arab North Africa to the Arab Levant to deal with the last Syrian obstacle to their regional hegemony. The U.S. administration of President Barak Obama seems now determined to make or break with the al-Assad regime, distancing itself from decades long policy of crisis management pursued by predecessor U.S. administrations vis-à-vis Syria, which stands now in the Middle East as former Yugoslavia stood in the wake of the collapse of the former Soviet Union when a series of ethnic and religious wars wrecked it, creating from its wreckage several new states, until the Serbian core of the Yugoslav union was bombed by NATO in 1999 to make Serbia now a hopeful member of the alliance.
However international and regional strategic geopolitical factors are turning Syria into a border red line that might either herald a new era of multipolar world order, which puts an end to the U.S. unipolar order, if the U.S. led alliance fails to change the Syrian regime, or completes a U.S. – NATO total regional hegemony that would preclude such a long awaited outcome, if it succeeds: Internally, the infrastructure of the state is strong, the military, security, diplomatic and political ruling establishment stands coherent, unified and potent, and economically the state is not burdened with foreign debt and is self-sufficient in oil, food and consumer products. Imposing a complete suffocating economic and diplomatic siege on the country seems impossible. What is more important politically is the fact that the pluralistic diversity of the large Syrian religious and sectarian minorities deprives the major and better organized Islamist opposition of the Muslim Brotherhood of the leading role it enjoys in the protests of what has been termed the “Arab Spring” in Tunisia, Egypt and Yemen.
Contrary to western analyses, which expect the change of regimes by the “Arab Spring” to be a motivating drive for a similar change in Syria, the changes were bad examples for Syrians. The destruction of the infrastructure of the state, especially in Iraq and Libya, and leaving their national decision making to NATO and U.S., at least out gratefulness to their roles in the change, is not viewed by the overwhelming majority of the Syrians, including the mainstream opposition inside the country, as an acceptable and feasible price for change and reform. The Arab Egyptian veteran and internationally prominent journalist, Mohammed Hassanein Heikal, in an interview with the Qatar based Aljazeera satellite TV Arabic channel, cited these bad Iraqi and Libyan examples as alienating the Syrian middle class in major city centers away from supporting the protests demanding change of regime; he even accused Aljazeera of “incitement” against the Syrian regime of al-Assad.
This overall internal situation continues to deter outside intervention on the one hand and on the other explains why the opposition has so far failed to launch even one protest of the type that moved out millions of people to the streets as was and is the case in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain and Yemen, especially in major population centers like the capital Damascus, Aleppo, both which are home to about ten million people. The regional repercussions of a sectarian civil war in Syria are a deterrent factor against both militarization of pro-reform peaceful protests and foreign military intervention in support thereof. Therefore, when NATO and the U.S. pressure or encourage their regional allies in Turkey and the GCC Arab countries to foment Sunni sectarian strife in the Syrian ally of Shiite Iran as a prelude to civil war, their only pretext for military intervention, they are in fact playing with a regional fire that will not save neither the perpetrators nor the “vital” interests of their NATO-U.S. sponsors.
Regionally, Iran’s possible loss of its Syrian bridge to the Mediterranean, while its routes to the strategic sea could easily be closed via the Gulf, the Arabian Sea, the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, the Red sea and the Suez Canal by the fifth and sixth U.S. fleets as well as the by fleets of the NATO member states and Israel, and pro- U.S. governments overlooking these sea lanes, is an Iranian red line the trespassing of which could create a situation fraught with potential risks of regional war eruption. Regionally also, less a U.S. – NATO decision to go to an all out war on Iran and Syria, military intervention in Syria would not be on the agenda unless guarantees are in place that Israel will be out of reach of expected Iranian and Syrian retaliation. The timing of the U.S. – NATO shift of focus on Syria coincides with a deadlocked Palestinian – Israeli peace process and the failure of Barak Obama administration to deliver on its promises to its Arab allies, thus alienating the most moderate among them, namely Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is still being pushed to a collision course with the American sponsor of the process by the U.S. – led international campaign against his overdue bid to secure the recognition of Palestine as a full member of the United Nations.
The failure of the U.S. peace mediator applies more counterproductively to the Syrian – Israeli peace making. Al-Assad regime came to power in a coup d’etat with the precise aim of engaging the U.S. – sponsored peace process in the Middle East. More than forty years later the United States has yet to deliver. This failure erodes the influence of the moderate pro-U.S. Arabs, stands as the biggest obstacle to building a U.S. – Arab – Israeli front against Iran, which is an American and Israeli regional priority, and adds ammunition and forces to the Syrian protagonist. Abbas’ reconciliation accord with the Syrian – based Hamas is a good example to ponder in this context; another is the Palestinian leader’s latest pronounced option of dissolving the self-ruled Palestinian Authority under Israeli military occupation, which would be a death blow to the Arab – Israeli peace process.
Internationally, the latest Russian and Chinese vetoes at the UN Security Council is indication enough that the U.S. – NATO endeavor to change the Syrian regime has trespassed another red line. Loosing its navy facilities in Syria would leave Russia out of the Mediterranean Sea and render it a U.S. – NATO lake. China whose competitive edge in Africa is being challenged following the change of regime in Libya would view the fall of Syria to become a U.S. – NATO launching ground against Iran as a real threat to its similarly competitive partnership with Iran. Chasing Beijing also out of Iran will render the emerging Chinese economic giant at the mercy of NATO partners if they succeed in securing their control over Iran and Syria because such a control will secure also their control of both strategic oil reserves in the Middle East and central Asia. This is absolutely a Chinese red line. Diplomatically, U.S. – NATO plans of military intervention in Syria has been denied any cover of United Nations legitimacy by the Russian and Chinese vetoes. Legitimacy of the Arab League is still lacking; freezing the membership of a member state, like was the case with Libya, needs consensus, which is not forthcoming.
November 4th, 2011, 12:41 am
ann said:
222. majedkhaldoun said:
The free syrian army will increase in number in the future, the regime will be surprised.
where do you get all your insider news from? the cartoon network?!
hehehehe
November 4th, 2011, 12:55 am
ann said:
Israel’s Big Bluff – November 04, 2011
How we’ll go to war with Iran
http://original.antiwar.com/justin/2011/11/03/israels-big-bluff/
In the summer of 2008, an op ed piece by Benny Morris, an Israeli historian of note, warned:
“Israel will almost surely attack Iran’s nuclear sites in the next four to seven months – and the leaders in Washington and even Tehran should hope that the attack will be successful enough to cause at least a significant delay in the Iranian production schedule, if not complete destruction, of that country’s nuclear program. Because if the attack fails, the Middle East will almost certainly face a nuclear war – either through a subsequent pre-emptive Israeli nuclear strike or a nuclear exchange shortly after Iran gets the bomb.”
The Israeli government has been openly threatening Iran with attack for years, and we have learned not to take their outbreaks of war hysteria too seriously. During the last year of George W. Bush’s final term in office, there was heightened speculation that Tel Aviv was pressuring Washington to launch such an attack, and indeed it appears Vice President Dick Cheney argued for precisely that, albeit to no avail. Now the war talk has been revived by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who, along with his defense minister, Ehud Barak, has not only been arguing within the Cabinet for such a strike, but has now supposedly moved into the implementation stage.
We are told by the Israeli media that there is a big debate going on, with two former top officials – Meir Dagan, recently retired as head of the Mossad, and Yuval Diskin, head of Shin Bet – going so far as to leak the specifics of Bibi’s scheme in order to torpedo the plan. Dagan is said to have remarked that the war plans are “the stupidest idea I’ve ever heard” – and he’s quite right.
The problem with this alleged plan is that Israel doesn’t have the military capacity to do the job and do it well: Iran’s nuclear facilities are enclosed within hardened sites, and are spread out to such a degree that Israeli war planes would have trouble reaching them. While the Israelis have recently tested a long-range missile that has the capacity to hit Iranian targets, the idea that they could take out all the intended targets in one fell swoop is simply a fantasy. Therefore, this alleged “debate” taking place within the Israeli leadership, complete with a phony “investigation” by Netanyahu into who leaked the nonexistent Israeli attack “plan,” is a non-event. The whole thing, in short, is a bluff.
But who is being bluffed here? Not the Iranians, who are surely aware of Israel’s incapacity. The volume of the war hysteria is being turned up with one purpose in mind: the Israelis want the US to do their dirty work for them. This is a threat aimed not only – or even primarily – at Iran, but at us.
This has been their modus operandi throughout all the years of the “special relationship”: it’s “special” because there is no reciprocity involved. Our unconditional support for the Israeli settler colony has always been an albatross hung ‘round our necks, and never more so than post-9/11, when the need for US allies within the Muslim world is vital. We support them financially, militarily, and politically, while getting absolutely nothing but grief – and more demands – in return.
Under the Bush administration, at least in the beginning, the Israelis had a free hand in Washington, at least as far as the White House was concerned. Their agents of influence permeated the national security bureaucracy and were in place when the 9/11 attacks occurred, ready and willing to carry out a policy that benefited Israel at America’s expense. This has always been Israel’s ace in the hole: the existence of a strong domestic lobby in America to push its interests to the exclusion of all else. While support for Israel is nearly reflexive in the GOP, in part due to the influence of Christian evangelicals of the dispensationalist persuasion, the lobby is also firmly entrenched in the Democratic party, especially in its Clintonian wing.
The lobby’s open hostility to the Obama administration – based on the mere possibility that there would be a more even-handed approach to the Middle East after Bush – culminated in Vice President Joe Biden’s disastrous visit to the Jewish state, where he was ambushed and humiliated by the Israelis.
However, the relationship soon jelled into a more traditional, less openly adversarial mode. Under the “team of rivals” rubric – pushed by plagiarist and court historian Doris Kearns Goodwin in her hagiographic book on Abraham Lincoln’s administration, and Bush idolator-turned-Obamaite Andrew Sullivan – the divisions in the winning Democratic coalition would be healed by replicating Lincoln’s historic compromise with his rivals, incorporating them into the Cabinet. This campaign was successful because it both flattered Obama, likening him to one of the giants of American history, and reduced his power in the key realm of foreign policy – the one area where he is perceived as “weakest,” at least from the War Party’s perspective.
The ruling elite was prepared for “change” in all but one area, and so a bargain was struck: Obama would stick to domestic policy, where he would have his hands full anyway, and the Clinton gang would get to set the foreign policy agenda, with the ultimate authority – and responsibility – vested in the President.
With Hillary Clinton’s appointment as Secretary of State, the question of America’s relationship to Israel was turned over to the right-wing of the Democratic party, which has always been among the happiest hunting grounds of the Israel lobby. It was the Clinton administration, you’ll recall, that nearly freed convicted Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard, until a rebellion in the military-intelligence community made Bill back off: as a kind of compensation prize, the Israelis got a pardon for financier and reputed Mossad asset Marc Rich, Clinton’s last disgraceful act carried out in the Oval Office. Hillary’s record when it comes to the Palestinian question is down-the-line support for the official Israeli position, with only minor disagreements — such as occurred over the settlements issue — that are soon “resolved” in Israel’s favor.
The announcement of a “plot” by the Iranians to blow up a Washington restaurant with the Saudi ambassador in it was met by near universal skepticism, except where it counts – in Washington and the capitals of Europe. Yet this almost comical tall tale is just the first shot over the bow in the ongoing propaganda war: next week we’ll be hearing from that den of thieves known as the United Nations, whose nuclear watchdog agency will issue a new report on alleged Iranian nuclear weapons research, which promises to be more serious. The British, for their part, have announced their support for military action in advance, and the rest of the West, along with our Arab satraps, is bound to follow in their wake. It is left to the Americans, however, to give the command to strike – not the Israelis.
Israeli efforts to drag us into a war with Iran have so far been limited to provoking Tehran’s proxies in the region – Hamas, Hezbollah, the Syrian Ba’athists – into a direct confrontation with the US. The Netanyahu regime has abandoned this policy of indirection and gradualism, however, and instead opted for a direct assault on the problem: by constantly threatening to strike themselves, the Israelis are counting on their domestic lobby to push the Americans into acting preemptively.
This plan appears to be working. Although the last US intelligence assessment [.pdf] of Iran’s nuclear capabilities asserted with near certainty that Tehran had abandoned its weapons program in 2003, the War Party isn’t too concerned about making its case airtight: the Israel lobby has both parties, and Congress, in its hip pocket, and with Hillary leading the charge the “existential threat” to Israel’s very existence will be met with US force. It’s only a matter of timing.
The War Party, however, has another problem, and that is the objective factors which militate against another war at this time, number one being the imminent collapse of the world economic system, and specifically the instability of the banks. As the dominoes of the Euro-zone fall one upon the other, and the US banking system itself comes under threat, the question of how to finance this war, even while its economic consequences – starting with $200 a barrel oil prices – are visited upon our heads.
This problem can be solved, however, if the political consequences of this “perfect storm” of war and economic implosion line up with the stars. With America at war, the economic privations we will have endured anyway will be masked by the general numbness induced by the atmosphere of crisis. Your home has been foreclosed? You’ve lost your job, or you can’t get to your job because it costs $100 in gas to travel one way? Blame it on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the “nuclear madman” of the Middle East.
The very real financial crisis of the West will be resolved by the introduction of yet another crisis, in this case a completely manufactured and ginned up one. Imbued with new authority, the Obama administration will take full advantage of the wartime atmosphere to impose “emergency” economic measures, commandeering the economy in the name of “national security” and getting the Republicans to go along with it on “patriotic” grounds. We’ll be subjected to endless demands for bipartisan “unity” in the face of a foreign “threat,” with both “left” and “right” factions of the War Party inundating the air waves and the blogosphere with war propaganda.
Can it be stopped? Looming economic disaster can’t be forestalled much longer: no matter how many band-aids they put on the cancer, the only cure for the underlying illness is the shock of deflation – and a meteoric plunge in the standard of living. The social and political consequences of such a descent would threaten the very foundations of our political system, and tear the fabric of society apart: war, in such a circumstance, is a unifying factor, one that directs the energy and anger of the populace outward, at some fake foreign “enemy,” rather than at the real enemy, which is right there in Washington, D.C.
In the face of this, the supposedly “anti-government” ideology of the Republican “tea party” would vanish overnight, and aside from criticizing the President for not prosecuting the war with sufficient militance, the GOP would line up behind the commander-in-chief. A new comity would come to Washington. Cut the budget? Not in wartime! The only way the Republicans are going to allow a tax hike, which the Obamaites have been yearning for – and which Occupy Wall Street supports in the form of a “transaction tax” – will be if they call it a “war tax,” or a “kill the Muslims tax.” Such a meeting of the minds is in the works.
As both parties march us off to war with Iran, the reality of who holds the power in this country comes ever clearer in focus: the “team of rivals” that binds the Obamaites to the Clintons also includes to the Republican party establishment when it comes to the question of war and peace. All these factions compete with each other in seeing how low they can kowtow to the Israel lobby: Pat Buchanan’s quip that Washington is “Israeli-occupied territory” is right on the mark.
The Zionist project of a “Greater Israel” faces two big obstacles: Hamas and Hezbollah, backed by Syria and Iran. The Syrians are being taken care of in other ways, but the Iranians are a harder nut to crack. The only hope is to drag the US into a military confrontation with Iran, and let our GIs fight and die for Israel. The question is how to sell this to the American people. Even if the Iranians were to be so foolish as to weaponize their nuclear capabilities – and there is no convincing evidence that they are doing so – this would hardly constitute a credible threat to the United States, or even to Israel. After all, the US faced off with a nuclear-armed Soviet Union, which had enough nukes to extinguish all life on the planet: and yet the stand off lasted throughout the cold war, which never did get hot enough to allow for a nuclear exchange. Both sides were deterred by the horrific consequences of their own weaponry, and the world escaped the worst case scenario.
Indeed, by this measure, a nuclear-armed Iran is hardly an “existential threat” to Israel. For the equalization of the military balance of power would result in a tense but lasting “peace,” and eliminate the possibility that Israel – which does have nuclear weapons, and plenty of them – would use nukes against Iran or anyone else in the region, without fear of retaliation in kind.
Such logic, however, is alien to the Washington mindset, which cannot frame the question objectively and has lost all sight of American interests when it comes to the Middle East. This is the result of the distortion of the policymaking process, which has fallen under the undue influence of foreign lobbyists who serve Israel’s interests above all. This is why the issue of Israel’s nuclear arsenal – the single most destabilizing factor in the Middle East – never comes up in our discourse.
The Israel lobby is hell-bent on war, and is likely to get it: but they have to be careful. To launch such a project in the midst of a presidential election season is a risky business. They must do everything in their power to prevent the election from becoming a referendum on the war question, and the simplest way to do that is to make sure both major candidates are securely in the War Party’s camp. That’s the only way they can win: by rigging the outcome.
What’s needed is a mass mobilization against this administration’s war plans, but frankly I see little hope of such a movement arising. The left in this country is so tied to the Obama administration that such a development is highly unlikely to get off the ground, and the right – except for the Ron Paul brigades – is certain to line up in favor of military action in defense of Israel, which they love more than their own country.
In short, we are headed for disaster. As Bette Davis once put it: fasten your seat belts, it’s going to be a bumpy night!
November 4th, 2011, 1:09 am
ann said:
Bumper olive crop expected in Syria – November 3, 2011
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/90064033?Bumper%20olive%20crop%20expected%20in%20Syria
With an all-time record of more than 200,000 tons of oil projected to be produced from olive trees this year, Syria has the potential of becoming a Middle East oil power of a sort even as its economy has been paralyzed by months of unrest.
clearpxl
The turmoil has exacted a heavy toll on the country’s $60 billion economy, but people in the industry insist it has not had a major impact on olive picking. The harvest started a few weeks ago along the regions of the Mediterranean coast and will progress eastward over the next couple of months until the season ends in February.
“Labor is fine. It is there. I think that they are going as normal,” Ramez Djaroueh of the Zirtoon olive oil company near Aleppo, told The Media Line. “I haven’t heard anything to suggest that farmers are having problems.”
Djaroueh, whose family runs a modern olive oil mill and processing plan, was less concerned about the unrest than about the upcoming Eid al-Adha holiday that will take pickers out of the fields.
Business and tourism in Syria has soured. But olive oil is a main stable for Syrians, who are one of the world’s top consumers, downing some five kilos (11 pounds) each annually on average. Five kilos is about five liters a person.
Even though the pro-democracy protests aimed at toppling President Bashar Al-Assad have spread across cities, towns and rural areas of Syria since March, claiming the lives of more than 3,000 people, the olive harvest continues, Djaroueh says.
Syria produced 180,000 tons last year, more than Turkey’s 160,000, but only a fraction of what the world leader, Spain, produced — 1.2 million tons, or over half of the world’s olive oil. While Turkey has planted olive groves and expects to produce more than 700,000 tons by 2015 and become the world’s second-largest olive oil producer, its Levant neighbor Syria, beset with rebellion and retarded agriculture, has no national strategy beyond just hoping to hold its own as the fourth- or fifth-largest producer in the world.
The Syrian Ministry of Agriculture issued a statement on Tuesday saying that weather conditions are helping the harvest and forecasted a production of just 175,000 tons of olive oil. But the International Olive Oil Council (IOOC), a trade body in Madrid, estimates Syria will produce 200,000 tons.
“Unfortunately, we have had very little contact with the Syrians. They are very much afraid to speak to us. They work for the government and they tell us ‘No, everything is all right.’ But we don’t know,” Juliette Cayol of the IOOC, told The Media Line.
Other olive mills and olive oil companies in Syria refused to speak on the telephone or answer e-mail messages about the situation.
About 95 percent of the world’s olive trees are in the Mediterranean region. Olive oil is so well liked and is such an integral part of the cuisine that according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Mediterranean basin countries also account for 77 percent of the world’s consumption.
But elsewhere around the world, olive oil consumption has dramatically risen over the past decade – largely due to the popularity of the “Mediterranean diet.” World olive oil consumption will reach 2.98 million tons, with a 3.7 percent increase from 2009.
While Italy and Spain long ago captured the brand as the globe’s supreme olive oil producers, Syria has focused its limited export market to the Arab world and now, like the rest, on China.
“Our prices are higher,” said Djaroueh. “We have special trade agreements with countries like Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other Arab countries. These are our main export markets. China now is picking up for Syria as well. We have some sales in the United States but they are mostly buying from Spain.”
Syria exported about 25,000 tons of olive oil last year. “Syrian farmers lack high-quality production techniques, which the government needs to address,” Omar Adi, the owner of the Near East Olive Products company near Hama was quoted as saying in the Syrian Times. “The Syrian olive oil is good, but in the international market, you need a high, stable quality.”
Olive oil is a prominent part of the Syrian agriculture industry, contributing some 8 percent of total output. An estimated 100,000 families directly depend on olive growing. According to government statistics, it provides over 13 million workdays a year just picking them even though the harvest lasts just part of the year. These figures are expected to decrease, however, as the field becomes more mechanized.
“There are new harvesting machines that have been introduced in the last two years so that should help also cutting down the cost of picking the olives,” Djaroueh said. “It [the yield] should be more this year. I think it could be closer to 215,000 tons.”
November 4th, 2011, 1:32 am
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: ANN
RE: “…where do you get all your insider news from?…”
Pot calling the kettle black, spammy annie. You’re the last person on SC to be asking anyone for sources. All your sources are old, obsolete, questionable, unreliable or just plain illiterate. Someone should turn you upside down and shake the Besho Bribe money out of your pockets.
November 4th, 2011, 1:37 am
ann said:
Turkey’s main opposition warns of ‘war plot’ against Syria
Thursday, November 3, 2011
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=turkeys-main-opposition-warns-of-8216war-plot8217-against-syria-2011-11-03
Güler said almost every Syrian politician they met had lamented Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s attitude toward the Syrian administration. “We had very good relations with Turkey until six months ago,” Güler quoted al-Attar as saying. “We were discussing removing the borders. We don’t understand why he has this hostile attitude toward us at the moment. He should give up supporting the terrorists.”
The Syrian administration made a distinction between the Syrian opposition demanding reforms and the armed rebels, Güler said. “They told us they understood the opposition who demand more reforms, but they are against armed protesters, whom they called as terrorists.”
November 4th, 2011, 1:55 am
SYRIAN HAMSTER said:
Transformation Complete
If you think this is addressed to you, then it is
It is painful to watch. Over months, fear, unjustifiable senses of entitlement, and hidden sectarian allegiances were mixed with the weirdest combination of superiority-inferiority complexes managed to overtake whatever shred of rational faculties some of you might have had in the past.
I have watched you one after another working yourself and each other up into a group of amateur fascists. While some of you had proudly proclaimed belonging to the fascist party of Syria long time ago, the rest, have now turned into the ugly people/group you are now, thoughtless parrots.
You can’t love Syria for what it is, you are incapable of love. Everything you have said and done supports the worst regime ever known in its history. And when the people rose up, you had nothing but contempt for them because they did not wait for your enlightened and educated leadership. So you turned yourself into trumpets of oppression, speaking of peace while at the same time parroting, most thoughtlessly the propaganda of a regime you yourself know for what it is, but refuse to take a stand against it. And to cover your pathetic stand, you uncritically, and with a twist of your own insecurities and prejudice injected into every single relay, keep working yourself up into a fake sense of purity, shared only by the most devout nazi, white supremacist, and fascist thug. And with every single fascist post of yours, you diminish your opportunities for redemption into humanity and affirm your overpowering and easily detectable sense of impotence. Weaklings you were, weaklings you will remain despite of your bravados.
Power to the people, and to you, a future of self loathing, missed opportunities, and sad memories of your path to ugly transfiguration. For now, you are ready to serve your tyrannical master. Keep doing it, for you will survive him, the good people of Syria will see to that.
Don’t bother defend yourselves, simply push the dislike button, nothing is more befitting your impotence.
November 4th, 2011, 3:45 am
Mina said:
When it happened in Cairo, it was mentioned on CNN (even though the car has a US embassy number!)
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-11/03/c_131228256.htm
November 4th, 2011, 6:00 am
majedkhaldoun said:
Burhan Ghalioun said SNC welcome the AL effort.
I think he should send a formal complaint that the regime is violating the agreement,by continue the killing and shooting against peaceful demonstrators.
Ann
you can see the videos showing the defection.unless you want to close your eyes and plug your ears,and deny facts.
November 4th, 2011, 8:24 am
habib said:
Now the Europeans want China to support the EU financially. Must come with strings attached, like demanding they stay away from the internal affairs of other countries.
And be sure that when it comes to economics, the EU will do anything at this point.
The uprising is pretty much doomed if it continues violence, only possibility is negotiating with the regime about reforms. The status quo simply won’t change without Western interference, which won’t happen.
1: Because the West has seen what happened in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt (Islamists usurping power, continued action against dissenters).
2: Because China and Russia will never buckle in to the demands of the West, now they’ve gained strength (compare with Russia’s (Or let’s say Yeltsin’s) impotence in the 90s in relation to the Balkans). A few years later, and the Russians are crushing pro-Western Georgians without any consequences.
We must look at the bigger picture. It doesn’t matter a single bit what the Gulf states and Turkey say or do.
November 4th, 2011, 8:59 am
jad said:
Bronco,
An amnesty for those who carry weapons, sold it or finance it without being involved in any killing.
The government is asking them to deliver themselves to the police and they will be free immediately:
دعت وزارة الداخلية اليوم الجمعة في بيان تلاه محمد الشعار وزير الداخلية المواطنين ممن حملوا السلاح أو باعوه أو قاموا بتوزيعه أو نقله أو شرائه أو تمويل شرائه ولم يرتكبوا جرم القتل إلى تسليم أنفسهم إلى أقرب مركز شرطة في منطقتهم، وسيصار إلى تركهم فوراً.
وأضاف الشعار أن ذلك خلال مهلة محددة من يوم السبت 5-11 إلى 12-11 وسيعتبر ذلك بمثابة عفو عام عنهم
https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=219358178130193
November 4th, 2011, 9:39 am
Mina said:
Habib,
Indeed, this is why the link to the statements of the Libyan UN ambassador posted by Jad yesterday are so important.
Since February, people like Wissam Tarif and others on Twitter were only pushing for a “no dialogue” option. They have responsibility for the blood.
With the millions of Arab Americans in the US and a coming election, people would have expected to see a building pressure, parallel to the Palestinian bid at the UN which was coordinated with several lectures in “strategic places” such as universities and international forums. Instead of that, these pseudo-leftists and real corrupt-airheads have helped the MB Intl Corp gets more structured, and have simply been busy destroying their countries instead of pushing for Palestine recognition.
What is Qatar B Plan? Send troops to free Ramallah from Homs?
November 4th, 2011, 10:11 am
Revlon said:
The Acton Spring? How unrest in Syria spilled over into the respectable streets of west London
Home of President Bashar al-Assad’s father-in-law attacked by protesters under cover of darkness
Rob Hastings
Friday 04 November 2011
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/the-acton-spring-how-unrest-in-syria-spilled-over-into-the-respectable-streets-of-west-london-6256953.html
His surname roughly translates as “The Mute” in English, and it’s fitting. Dr Fawaz al-Akhras, the father-in-law of the Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, who lives in British suburbia, has remained conspicuously silent over the killings and torture in his homeland since the unrest began in March.
But now Dr Akhras is facing increasing pressure from both sides of the deadly revolt to reveal where he stands.
The Independent has learnt that his terraced house in Acton, west London, has recently been attacked by night-time protesters. His small garden wall is still lying on the lawn after being kicked over in anger at the regime his daughter Asma married into 11 years ago. (She is known locally as “Emma”, her nickname as a child.) Sources also said paint was daubed on Dr Akhras’s front door and his windows smashed.
At the door, his wife Sahar Otri, a retired diplomat, refused to comment; on sight of a reporter, Dr Akhras drove off into the night, clutching his mobile to his ear.
During an uprising largely shrouded from investigation by a ban on foreign reporting in Syria – where the UN says more than 3,000 people have died – the fact that Britain is home to a man who can pick up the phone and speak directly to his family within the Damascus Presidential Palace makes Dr Akhras an intriguing character.
Though most of those close to him insist Dr Akhras is far removed from Bashar’s central circle of power and influence, a classified 2008 cable from the then-US chargé d’affaires to Damascus, released by Wikileaks this year, names him as one of the President’s four key “money-men” around the world, recommending him as a figure Washington should “go after” to pressure the regime. “Contacts in the banking sector have commented on the large amount of funds that have begun to move recently through his accounts,” wrote Michael H Corbin. “A long-time resident of London, he is suspected of being another avenue used by Asad [sic] to stash funds abroad.”
…………More
November 4th, 2011, 10:16 am
Mina said:
Arab League anyone?
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/25901/World/Region/Elderly-Shiite-beaten-to-death-by-Bahrain-police.aspx
Mikati takes his distance
http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/2/8/25922/World/Region/Lebanon-PM-acknowledges-Syrians-kidnapped.aspx
November 4th, 2011, 10:45 am
Revlon said:
A view point from the trenches
________________________________
Sheikh Saleh AlHamwi, Member of the General Assembly of the Revolution:
The taste of a revolution is now being experienced
الشيخ صالح الحموي :طعم الثورة يظهر الآن
2011/11/04
الشيخ صالح الحموي عضو الهيئة العامة للثورة
http://www.sooryoon.net/?p=37201
كأنهم لم يسمعوا بثورات من قبل، كأنهم لم يعرفوا أن الثورة رفض لوجود شيء. هل نعرّف لهم معنى الثورة مرة أخرى وهم يدّعون أنهم سياسيون.
الثائر يرفض أن يكون بيدقاً في لعبة الشطرنج السياسية، يحركه السياسي كي يربح معركة ما.
أنتم يا سادة خائفون مع أنكم لستم من يتعرض للقتل، ولستم من يتعرض لسلخ الجلود، ولستم من تبقر بطونكم، ولستم من تغتصب نساؤهم. لا أدري مم أنتم خائفون.
أنتم يا سادة يائسون مع أنكم لستم محاصرين، ولم تسقط امرأة أمامكم حملها من قصف العصابات الأسدية. هل هناك أقوى من قلب الشباب، إنه مضرب المثل في قوة القلوب، ومع ذلك توقف قلب الصبية ذات الستة عشر عاماً من أصوات الدبابات الأسدية. وبناتكم ليست كذلك.
نحن نزعنا الشرعية قولاً واحداً، نقسم لكم أن ما يعرضونه عليكم اليوم عرضوه علينا منذ شهور من قبل محافظ بلدتنا، قالوا لنا: أسقطوا النظام قدر ما شئتم، وقولوا ماشئتم ولكن لا تتعرضوا للرئيس، لا تسبوا الرئيس، لا تشتموا الرئيس، فهو ما يهمنا فقط. إن كنتم لا تصدقون فاسئلوا أهل حماة إن كنتم لا تعلمون. وكنا بعض الحاضرين.
يا أيها السادة السياسيون : الثورة رفض لوجود شيء. هل نعيدها عليكم كل يوم؟ نحن نرفض وجود هذا النظام ونرفض كل ما فيه ومن فيه ومن هو قائم عليه.
We annulled the legitimacy in one emphatic statement.
What is being offered to the opposition now was offered to us months ago.
The mayor of our town offered that we may ask for anything, including the dismantling of the system, but that we should not curse the president; “He is the only thing that matters to us”.
يسألوننا ماذا لو نفّذ النظام مبادرة الجامعة العربية ما أنتم فاعلون؟
هو نفس السؤال لو قيل للمسلمين: لو نطق الشيطان بالشهادتين فما أنتم فاعلون. الشيطان حُكم عليه. والشعب أطلق حكمه وقضى، وليس بعد قضاء الشعب قضاء. حكم الشعب ليس له محكمة نقض تعيد النظر في حكمه. حكم الشعب لا يردّ.
They ask us: What if the regime came through with his promises to the AL?
We say, the People have passed their verdict, and it is irrevocable.
الشعب يريد إعدام الرئيس، وكلمة رئيس هنا بمعنى: من كان يقال له رئيس.
نحن نزعنا الشرعية وها أنتم تريدون إعادتها تحت مظلة الجامعة العربية. فشل النظام بإقناعنا فلجأ إلى الجامعة العربية لتكون واسطة لبقائه. فشل روسيا والصين والأمم المتحدة بأن يثنوا عزيمتنا.
The people have annulled the legitimacy of the regime; No one should attempt to imply its existance by using the legitimacy of the AL.
بدأنا بمطلب الحرية ثم تحولت حركتنا من مطالب إلى ثورة ضد النظام ثم إلى ثورة ضد النظام ورموزه واليوم نرى أنفسنا نضع عنوانا جديدا لثورتنا: الثورة السورية ضد الكرة الأرضية.
أنتم يا سادة تحدثون أنفسكم كما يلي: لو سحب النظام الجيش والأمن من الشوارع سينزل الملايين وبالتالي سيسقط النظام تحت ضغط المظاهرات. لا تظنوا أننا لا نفهم كيف تفكرون.
The compromising opposition’s mantra is this: if the regime withdraw their army and security, the people will demonstrate in the millions and the systyem will fall!
تفكيركم هذا يدلنا بوضوح أنكم لم تتذوقوا معنى الثورة، مجرد أن يخطر في بالكم تلك الأفكار فهذا يعني أنكم متفرجون متعاطفون معنا ولكن لستم منا. لم تذوقوا معنى كلمة ثائر، هذا هو لب الفرق بيننا وبينكم، الثورة لها طعم لا تعرفونه، ذقناه نحن وكان لونه أحمر ورائحته ذكية مختلطة بطعم ملوحة الدموع. ومن ذاق عرف ومن عرف غرف.
Your mantra tells that you have not lived the revolution; You are not of us, but merely sympathising spectators.
You have not lived to see and smell the blood, sweat and tears!
November 4th, 2011, 10:52 am
norman said:
Mina,
Homs will be safe from Qatar, if Qatar thinks that it can liberate Ramallah by attacking Homs,
November 4th, 2011, 10:56 am
bronco said:
Jad
Turkey, by law, does not accept any refuges except if they come from … Europe. This is why they keep saying that the Syrian refugees in Hatay are ‘guests’. They are not covered by the UN so the Turks are paying for the expenses and want to send them back as soon as possible. The camp is sealed off as the Turks worry that the Hatay people who are mostly ethnic Syrians and Alawites would resent the presence of all these Sunnis. Since Angelina Jolie, curiously there has been no much media coverage of the life in the camps.
As for the FSA, Turkey is taking a big gamble on supporting them. I wonder if they are not using them as a bargaining card to discourage Syria’s support for the PKK.
There was a confirmed information that the FSA is kept under military control in a different camp. No media is allowed in the camp. The only interviews are by phone, so the claim of 10,000 defectors is not verifiable. If the purpose of the FSA is to attract more defectors and to gain popularity, I wonder why they are not showing some of these 10000 in the media. (There is not a single photo of this ‘army’, just claims)
The camp may end up like the Ashraf Camp of Iranian dissident army in Iraq: an embarrassment to the Turks.
I have little beliefs in these claims of defection as they usually turn out to be untrue. The only government official who “defected” with a video ‘proving it’ was Adnan Bakkour. Where is he? He seems forgotten by the media and by everybody. Another “ghost’ defector.
After starting on the right foot with “Zero problems with neighbors”, I think the Turks are accumulating mistakes after mistakes and Erdogan’s pretension and arrogance is reflected in how he is reported to be called by educated Turks: “The Fuhrer”
November 4th, 2011, 11:05 am
Revlon said:
صبحي حديدي : منعطف النظام السوري: طوق نجاة عربي؟
2011/11/04
صبحي حديدي
ما الذي يجعل بشار الأسد يختار أندرو غليغان، الصحافي البريطاني الذي يُعدّ بين الأشدّ عداء للعرب وانحيازاً لإسرائيل، لكي يجري معه حواراً هو الأوّل مع الإعلام الغربي منذ انطلاقة الانتفاضة السورية، أواسط أذار (مارس الماضي)؟ ولماذا توجّب أن تكون الصحيفة هي الـ’صنداي تلغراف’ التي لا يُعرف عنها، ولا عن قرينتها الأمّ، الـ’دايلي تلغراف’، إلا كلّ تأييد أعمى لإسرائيل والصهيونية العالمية واليمين المحافظ؟ وكيف استقرّ الأسد على هذا الصحافي، وهذه الصحيفة، متناسياً أنها كانت منبر الشتائم الأقذع ضدّ حلفائه في صفّ ‘الممانعة’ و’المقاومة’؛ فلم تقف خلف العدوان الإسرائيلي الوحشي على لبنان صيف 2006، فحسب، بل أنحت باللائمة الشديدة على رئيس الوزراء الإسرائيلي الأسبق إيهود أولمرت لأنه لم يذهب أبعد، فيدمّر أكثر وأشرس؟
ثمة الكثير من الإجابات، بالطبع، ومعظمها يرتدي صفة منطقية بسيطة للغاية، تنهض من معطيات سلام الأمر الواقع مع نظام ‘الحركة التصحيحية’، في عهد الأسد الأب ثمّ وريثه، حيث سادت في جبهة الجولان المحتل حال اللاحرب التي لا تستتبع أيّ تنازلات إسرائيلية ذات معنى، وذلك منذ حرب 1973 وما أعقبها من اتفاقيات فصل القوات. وهكذا، تنبثق إجابة أولى من يقين إسرائيلي، تتبناه بالضرورة الدوائر الصهيونية العالمية، وبات معروفاً وغير مسكوت عنه البتة، بأنّ النظام السوري الراهن هو الأفضل، سياسياً وعسكرياً واجتماعياً واقتصادياً؛ وبديله (خاصة عند انتصار الانتفاضة، وإقامة نظام وطني ديمقراطي تعددي، ذي قاعدة شعبية متينة، وجيش وطني يُعنى بمسائل الدفاع عن البلد وليس حماية الاستبداد والفساد…) سوف يكون كابوس ‘الربيع العربي’ الأكثر ضرراً لإسرائيل.
إجابة ثانية تنجم عن ‘تراث’ الخدمات التي قدّمتها ‘الحركة التصحيحية’، على نحو مباشر وصريح وغير مستتر في أحيان كثيرة، إلى سياسات إسرائيل ذات الطابع الستراتيجي، وليس التكتيكي الصرف وحده، فضلاً عن السياسات الأمريكية والأطلسية. اللائحة هنا تبدأ من لبنان وضرب الحركة الوطنية والمقاومة الفلسطينية وحرب المخيمات، ولا تنتهي عند مشاركة قوّات النظام في تحالف ‘عاصفة الصحراء’ قبيل غزو العراق، كما أنها تمرّ بهذا الدور الوسيط الراهن الذي يسدي أفضل العون لإسرائيل: علاقة النظام مع إيران و’حزب الله’، بما ترفعه من فزّاعة ‘ممانعة’ زائفة، لكنها تمكّن تل أبيب من استدراج المزيد من المساعدت المالية والأسلحة المتطوّرة الأمريكية. السذّج وحدهم، وفي صفوف ‘الممانعين’ أكثر من غيرهم، كانوا بحاجة إلى تصريحات رامي مخلوف، ابن خال الأسد وكبير تماسيح الفساد في سورية، حول ارتباط المصير بين النظام وإسرائيل، لكي يدركوا أنّ وراء الأكمة ما وراءها، وأنّ بعض ‘الممانعة’ يخدم إسرائيل أوّلاً، وثانياً، وعاشراً!
إجابة ثالثة يثيرها ذلك الرماد الذي يُذرّ في العيون، حول ‘علمانية’ النظام، مقابل ‘إسلامية’ الانتفاضة؛ الأمر الذي يفضي إلى المعادلة التالية، التبسيطية تماماً، ولكن تلك التي تثير رهاباً شعبوياً عالياً في الغرب: أليست هذه الأنظمة الفاسدة، العسكرية أو الوراثية أو الدكتاتورية، في تونس ومصر وليبيا واليمن وسورية، أفضل من جماعة ‘الإخوان المسلمين’، وتطبيق ‘الشريعة’ الإسلامية، وفرض الحجاب والنقاب؛ ثمّ الطامة الكبرى، المتمثلة في ‘الجهاد’ و’القاعدة’ و’الإرهاب’؟ الطريف، والأخبث الذي يصبح أحطّ تفكيراً وأعلى استغفالاً للعقول، أن يأتيك مَن يقول، دون أن يرفّ له جفن: صحيح أنّ بشار الأسد دكتاتور، ولكنه ليس ذلك الدكتاتور الذي تألفه في أوساط حكّام العرب، فهو أقام في بريطانيا سنتين (أي أنه، كما يُراد منّا أن نفهم، عاش بما يكفي لكي يتثقف ويتهذّب ويتعلّم آداب السلوك الغربية!)، ويرتدي الجينز، ويسكن بيتاً متواضعاً في دمشق، ولا يصادفك في الطريق إلى زيارته إلا حارس واحد!
هنا، تثبيتاً لتفاصيل الاستغفال السابقة، ما كتبه غليغان في الـ’صنداي تلغراف’، الأسبوع الماضي: ‘المرأة الشابة التي رتبت اللقاء اصطحبتني في سيارتها الشخصية، فقادتها طيلة عشر دقائق قبل أن نبلغ ما بدا شارعاً جانبياً غير مطروق تحفّ به الشجيرات. لم يكن هنالك أمن مرئي، ولا حتى بوّابة، ما عدا ذلك الحارس الذي كان أشبه بالإنكشاري، الواقف أمام محرس. تقدّمنا صوب بناء من طابق واحد، بحجم بيت ريفي، وكان الرئيس ينتظرنا في قاعة الدخول. جلسنا، نحن الثلاثة فقط، على أريكة جلدية في مكتب صغير. كان الرئيس يرتدي الجينز’. وبمعزل عن حكاية الحارس الإنكشاري، الطالعة من الثقافة الشرقية الوحيدة التي يلوح أنّ غليغان قد اكتسبها، فإنّ أيّ سوري سوف يسقط مغشياً عليه من الضحك إزاء هذه الوصف لإجراءات الأمن المحيطة بإقامة الأسد، فهذا المستوى من الحراسة لا يليق بأدنى ضابط في أي فرع من فروع المخابرات في الأزمنة العادية، فكيف اليوم إذْ يعيش النظام مأزقه الأقصى؟
ما سيرويه غليغان بعدئذ ليس أقلّ سخرية من العقول، لأنه ينقل على لسان الأسد تفسير الأخير لشرعيته الشعبية، وليس تلك الانتخابية فقط: ‘أوّل عناصر الشرعية الشعبية هي حياتك الشخصية. من المهمّ جداً كيف تعيش. أنا أعيش حياة طبيعية. أقود سيارتي الشخصية، ولدينا جيران، وأوصل أطفالي إلى المدرسة، لهذا أنا أحظى بشعبية. من المهم جداً أن تعيش هكذا، فهذا هو اسلوب الحياة السوري’. والصحافي العبقري يخرج إلى قلب دمشق لكي يلتمس أسلوب الحياة ذاك، فيجد الشوارع تعجّ بالناس، والمطاعم مفتوحة، والخمور متوفرة، ورجال الدين المسيحيين أمام كنائسهم بلا خوف… فلا يتبقى عنده شكّ في أنّ النظام ‘علماني’، ‘قوي’، و’مستقرّ’!
من جانبه كان الأسد، في أوّل حديث له مع صحافي غربي منذ انطلاق الانتفاضة، يتابع إيصال رسائل مشابهة لتلك التي أرسلها ابن خالته، رامي مخلوف، في الأسابيع الأولى من الانتفاضة، ولكن على نحو أكثر استهدافاً لهواجس الغرب، حكومات وشعوباً في الواقع، وأعلى نبرة من حيث توصيف المخاوف والهواجس، فضلاً عن نصب الفزّاعات. هنا بعض أبرزها: 1): التحذير، المبطّن بالوعيد، من مغبّة التدخل العسكري في سورية، حيث لن يعيد الغرب إنتاج افغانستان جديدة واحدة، بل ‘عشرات الأفغانستانات’؛ و2) التذكير بأنّ نظامه يقاتل ‘القاعدة’ والإسلاميين، وبالتالي من مصلحة الغرب أن يقف على الحياد، هذا إذا لم ينخرط في المعركة مع النظام؛ و3): التدخّل في شؤون النظام ‘سوف يحرق المنطقة بأسرها’، وإذا كانت ‘الخطة تسعى إلى تقسيم سورية، فإنّ هذا يعني تقسيم المنطقة بأسرها’، هنا أيضاً. سورية هي ‘محور المنطقة، فإذا شئتم العبث بالأرض فسوف تتسببون في هزّة أرضية’؛ و4): البلدان الغربية سوف تصعّد الضغوطات على النظام، ‘بالتأكيد’، كما يشدد الأسد، قبل أن يردّ بهجوم معاكس يذكّر بحديثه الشهير مع صحيفة ‘وول ستريت جورنال’ قبيل الانتفاضة: لكنّ سورية مختلفة، في كلّ اعتبار، عن مصر وتونس واليمن. التاريخ مختلف. والسياسة مختلفة’.
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ورغم أنّ موافقة النظام على خطة عمل الجامعة العربية لم تكن مفاجئة، خاصة وأنّ الخطة تجبّ تماماً بنود المبادرة العربية التي احتوت على تفاصيل إجرائية وتطبيقية ورقابية على مراحل، فإنّ ملابسات تلك الموافقة تشير إلى أنّ النظام لم يفلح في الفرار من ورطة مزدوجة: إذا لم يوافق، وتعرّض بالتالي إلى أكثر من حرج على صعيد حلفائه، وقد صاروا قلّة قليلة؛ أو إذا وافق ولم يطبّق شيئاً، أو أوحى بتطبيق القليل فقط من بنود الخطة. ومن الواضح أنّ الجامعة العربية، وهي مجمع تناقضات الأنظمة العربية جمعاء، وآخر مَنْ يساند الانتفاضات العربية، لم تكن في وارد التحرّك هذه المرّة، وعلى هذا النحو، لولا أنّ الإشارات الغربية باتت أوضح حول ‘تدويل’ مأزق النظام السوري، مترافقة مع عجز النظام عن كسر الانتفاضة، وفشله في إقناع القوى الإقليمية والدولية الكبرى بأنه قادر على الحسم في أي وقت قريب.
بهذا المعنى فإنّ خطة الجامعة العربية قد تكون طوق نجاة للنظام قبل الشعب السوري، ولكن من واجب الانتفاضة السورية أن تمسك بالطوق قبل إلقائه إلى الغريق، فلا تحاوره حول شروط انتشاله بقدر ما تتفاوض حول أنساق تفكيك النظام بأسره، وصولاً إلى إسقاطه التدريجي التامّ، بمؤسساته ورموزه الأمنية والعسكرية والسياسية والتجارية كافة. هذه، في الإجمال، سياقات تشير إلى برهة قوّة للشعب، ومنعطف انهيار للنظام، وتفرض على جميع تنسيقيات الانتفاضة ونشطائها، إسوة بأطياف المعارضة في الداخل والخارج، تفعيل الحراك الشعبي أكثر من أي وقت مضى، والارتقاء إلى مستوى امتلاك المبادرة بدل انتظار نتائجها. فليس دون أسباب وجيهة أنّ الأسد يهرع اليوم إلى حضن صهيوني عتيق مثل الـ’صنداي تلغراف’، وأن يلقى فيه الكثير من الرعاية والدفء والحنان!
November 4th, 2011, 11:09 am
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
“…….I think the Turks are accumulating mistakes after mistakes and Erdogan’s pretension and arrogance is reflected …”
Turkey received billions in so called investmnet cash from Saudi Arabia few months before Qurdoraggatan switched from hugging and kissing Bashar Assad.
November 4th, 2011, 11:15 am
zoo said:
‘15,000 strong’ army gathers to take on Syria
The SNC: “In 10 days we will present a new plan that is to include a military and political strategy. Here the issue of the SFA may well be put on the table.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8868027/15000-strong-army-gathers-to-take-on-Syria.html
An insurgent army which claims to be up to 15,000 strong is being coordinated from Turkey to take on President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, which risks plunging the region into open warfare.
The national “Syrian Free Army” aims to be the “military wing of the Syrian people’s opposition to the regime”, its leader told The Daily Telegraph from a heavily guarded camp in eastern Turkey.
Confirmation of an armed force operating with the covert approval of the Turkish authorities follows evidence that attacks inside Syria are causing high levels of casualties in the security forces. It also shows the anger of Recep Tayipp Erdogan, the Turkish premier, with Mr Assad, a former ally whose failed promises of reform have caused a deep rift.
“We are the future army of the new Syria. We are not in league with any particular sect, religion or political party. We believe in protecting all elements of Syrian society,” the Army’s leader, Col Riad al-Assad, said.
Made up of defectors from the regime’s army, SFA fighters are conducting “high quality operations against government soldiers and security agents,” Col Assad said.
Last week the SFA claimed responsibility for the killing of nine Syrian soldiers in battles in a town in central Syria. On Friday a further 17 regime soldiers were reported killed in violent clashes with defected former comrades in the city of Homs, a hotbed of resistance.
The violence has continued this week. There have been unconfirmed reports that nine members of the minority Alawite sect to which Mr Assad belongs were dragged off a bus and killed, while 15 members of the security forces were killed by deserters on Wednesday in two attacks, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The escalation has given new urgency to Wednesday’s fragile agreement between the regime and the Arab League to withdraw the army from the streets. The Observatory said 20 more people died in Homs on Thursday from gunfire and shelling despite the supposed agreement, while today will see an even bigger test as activists challenge Mr Assad with street protests after Friday prayers.
Col Assad has an extensive Turkish personal security entourage, and access to him is controlled directly by the Turkish foreign ministry.
Turkey’s formal position that it has only a humanitarian role in Syria and Col Assad was coy on whether the SFA was conducting cross border operations.
But he said his men were operating across Syria. “Our fighters protect the borders of dissident towns and villages, and attack soldiers who gun down peaceful demonstrators,” he said. “We are armed with guns and ammunition stolen from the regime”.
The size of the movement is unclear, with estimates ranging from 5,000 to 15,000. Many defectors have fled across the border and are being hosted in guarded camps in Turkey.
Col Assad appealed to the international community to impose a ‘no fly zone’ and a ‘no sea zone’.
“We don’t have the ability to buy weapons, but we need to protect civilians inside Syria,” he said. “We want to make a ‘safe zone’ in the north of Syria, a buffer zone in which the SFA can get organised.” With a small weapons supply, his movement is not yet in a position to pose a serious threat to the regime, but its presence marks a definitive change to the original unified opposition policy of peaceful protest.
Col Assad said he wanted his force to be recognised as the military wing of the Syrian National Council – the umbrella political opposition announced at a conference in Istanbul.
“We are waiting for them to appoint a high delegation and send a representative to speak to us about how we can support their aims militarily,” he said.
A council member speaking anonymously confirmed that ‘off the table discussions’ were taking place. “Our commitment is, and has always been, peaceful resolution, but our patience has a limit,” the source said. “It depends on the political developments among the Arab League, the Middle East and the International Community.
“In 10 days we will present a new plan that is to include a military and political strategy. Here the issue of the SFA may well be put on the table.”
November 4th, 2011, 11:16 am
Syria no kandahar said:
MB has given Revlon the day off(paid vacation)
Revlon read this then look at the mirror and spit at what you see
HNN شبكة أخبار حمص
خاص شبكة اخبار حمص
::::::::::::::::::::::::::
نحن نؤكد عن ما نشرته بعض الصفحات الوطنيه :
ان مجموعه مسلحه قامت البارحه بإختطاف ممرضتين من المشفى الوطني و قامو بتعريتهما في شوارع الخالديه و قتلهم بالسكاكين في وسط الشارع و من ثم رميهم في مقبرة الفردوس
رحم الله جميع شهدائنا الأبرار و نسأل الله أن يرحمنا برحمته يا أرحم الراحمين
S
3 hours ago
November 4th, 2011, 11:19 am
Amir in Tel Aviv said:
Jad and the mnhebaks clowns are discussing amnesty. How pathetic and detached from reality can you get? I mean, the only ones who’ll negotiate their amnesty, and the terms of their extradition to The Hague will be the heads of this junta and those who collaborated with them. Just like Saif al Islam is doing right now.
.
November 4th, 2011, 11:28 am
Revlon said:
Syrian National Council المجلس الوطني السوري
قام عضوا المجلس الوطني السوري الدكتور هشام مروة و المهندس حسان الهاشمي بزيارة لسعادة وزير الخارجية الكندي الذي أكد دعم بلاده للثورة السورية.
وفي بيان وزير الخارجية اليوم، أكد فيه سعادته الموقف الداعم للثورة السورية والمجلس الوطني ضد آلة القتل والتدمير الذي يمارسه النظام المجرم، وأشار إلى اللقاء الذي جمعه بوفد المجلس ودعمه الكامل للتغيير في سورية نحو الحرية و الديمقراطية
Minister Baird Condemns Ongoing Violence in Syria
(No. 329 – November 3, 2011 – 4:20 p.m. ET) Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird today released the following statement condemning the ongoing violence in Syria:
“Canada welcomes the efforts of the Arab League to halt the violence in Syria. However, the continued violence in Homs, which claimed the lives of 20 civilians today, demonstrates that President Assad has already reneged on his commitment to end his campaign of terror.
“Canada reiterates its strong condemnation of these violent attacks. The Assad regime has lost all legitimacy. We again call on President Assad and those backing him to relinquish power and step down immediately.
“During my meetings with representatives of the Syrian National Council, they have continuously outlined their appetite for change. Canada will support these calls and support the Syrian people in their quest for a brighter future, one which respects freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law
17 hours ago via mobile
November 4th, 2011, 11:31 am
irritated said:
#241 ATA
Next in La Hague or Coma: Pitt Bull Netahnyahu
November 4th, 2011, 11:47 am
ann said:
*** SURRENDER NOW ***
Syria pledges to pardon gunmen who surrender themselves – 2011-11-04
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-11/04/c_131230153.htm
DAMASCUS, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) — The Syrian interior ministry Friday called on those who carried, sold or distributed weapons but didn’t committed homicides to turn themselves in within a week to receive amnesty, the state TV reported.
The interior ministry pledge to release those who turn themselves in during a period between November 5 and 12.
In a statement carried by the state TV, the ministry said “this will be considered as an amnesty to those who surrender themselves and hand over their weapons.”
The statement came as fresh protests broke out in several Syrian cities to test the government commitment after pledging to withdraw its forces from protest centers under a peace plan initiated by the Arab League to end months of bloodshed.
Syria says weapons have been smuggled into the country via neighboring countries and reached the hands of those groups.
Syria has overtly charged that some countries are behind the unrest in the country and even fund what it called armed terrorist groups it blames for killing hundreds of policemen and military personnel across the country since the start of violence in mid March.
November 4th, 2011, 11:53 am
Revlon said:
Ugarit News | أوغاريت الإخبارية
أوغاريت || بسمة قضماني عضو المكتب التنفيذي في المجلس الوطني السوري: النظام لا يلبي شروطنا ونرى ذلك منذ الساعة الأولى بعد التوقيع على المبادرة
Ms Basma Qudmani, Executive officer of the SNC: The regime has not met our conditions as per evens of the first hours after singing the agreement.
http://www.facebook.com/UgaritNEWS
أكدت عضو المكتب التنفيذي في المجلس الوطني السوري بسمة قضماني أن “موضوع المحكمة الجنائية الدولية مطروح، وأول ما يصدر القرار من مجلس الأمن سيسمح للمعارضة السورية أن تحول الملف إلى المحكمة وهذا شأن لا بد منه لمحاكمة مجرمي هذا النظام جميعهم”، لافتة إلى أن “هناك أشخاص نفذت بعض الأوامر وربما لا تكون هي مسئولة عنها، وبالتالي فهذه الإجراءات قضائية لا نستطيع نحن أن نحكم عليها سياسيا”.
The file of the international court of justice is being considered. Once it is adopted by the SC, we shall refer it to the court.
أضافت، في اتصال هاتفي مع إذاعة “الشرق”، “هناك جرائم ترتكب بإسم بعض الفئات ضد الأقليات وهناك تحريض على الموضوع الطائفي، المجلس يجيب على ذلك بوثائق وبالتزامات توقع عليها جميع الطوائف وينظر فيها ويوقع عليها أيضا مشايخ الأقليات والأكثرية، وكل الطوائف متفقة على أن هناك ضرورة لميثاق وطني توافقي حول حماية حقوق كل المكونات المجتمع السوري لأننا مجتمع متنوع لكنه لديه تاريخ في الحياة كمواطنين سوريين مندمجين وليس كأقليات ومجموعات صغيرة” .
وعن حقيقة المجلس الوطني السوري من موقف المبادرة، قالت قضماني “نحن عبرنا عن الشروط المطلوبة قبل أن يتم أي كلام عن تفاوض مع هذا النظام، والشروط المسبقة هي لخلق البيئة المناسبة لكي يكون هناك مواجهة بين النظام والمجلس الوطني والمعارضة السورية وكل الشعب السوري”، مشيرة إلى أن “هذه الشروط لا يلبيها النظام ونرى ذلك منذ الساعة الأولى بعد التوقيع على المبادرة والوعد بالالتزام بها، بل كان هناك شهداء وتصعيد وتحريض، وبالتالي نحن لم نتعامل مع المبادرة في مضمونها بل نتعامل مع الشروط التي تفرضها جامعة الدول العربية وتطلب تنفيذها فورا وهذا ما ركزنا عليه كمجلس وطني لأننا نعلم بأن هذا النظام معتاد على المراوغة والكذب “.
We have conditions that ought to be met in order to engage in negotiations.
وتابعت “اعتقد أن الجامعة العربية وأمينها العام المحترم لا يشعر ولا يدرك قدرة هذا النظام على الكذب والمراوغة، ونحن لا نستطيع أن نستمر في الموافقة على فكرة المبادرة والقبول بان ننظر فيها وان نتحدث مع الجامعة عنها إذا استمر العنف، وإذا كان القمع كما هو فلا داعي لحديث عن مبادرة عربية معنا”.
وعن إذا كان هناك إمكانية لعمل سياسي خارج إطار الإطاحة بالنظام السوري، قالت قضماني “ليس هناك أي إمكانية غير تنحي الرئيس والإطاحة بهذا النظام، ونحن نتحدث عن تفاوض لنضع آلية انتقال السلطة إلى حكومة ديمقراطية تمثل إرادة الشعب وليس بإشراف أي من أعضاء هذا النظام، لذللك المطلوب من الأسد التنحي وترك هذا المنصب، وهذا هو مطلب الشعب”.
There is no way out without the stepping down of Jr.
وأضافت “نأمل أن لا ينفذ بشار الأسد التهديدات التي يدلي بها كل يوم عن إحراق المنطقة والبلد ، لذا إذا كان هناك أي حرص عند أي شخص في هذا النظام على سلامة الوطن ليعيدوه إلى الشعب الذي يطالب به وهذا كل ما نريده”، مؤكدة أن “ليس هناك أي توجهات أخرى لهذا المجلس فموقفنا واضح سياسيا وأخلاقيا وليس هناك أي شك أو انحياز عن هذا الخط السياسي وهو سيد موقفنا وما يجمعنا في هذا المجلس”.
November 4th, 2011, 12:01 pm
ann said:
Orthodox-Catholic Dialogue Meets, Issues Statement on Plight of Christians in the Middle East
November 3, 2011
WASHINGTON—The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation held its 81st meeting at St Paul’s College in Washington October 27-28. The meeting was chaired by Catholic Archbishop Gregory Aymond of New Orleans. The Orthodox co-chairman since 1987, Metropolitan Maximos of Pittsburgh, has retired, and a successor has not yet been named.
During this meeting the members heard reports about major events in the lives of the Catholic and Orthodox Churches and issued a brief statement, “On the Plight of Churches in the Middle East.”
“We are concerned for our fellow Christians who, in the face of daunting challenges, struggle to maintain a necessary witness to Christ in their homelands,” they wrote. “United with them in prayer and solidarity, we ask our fellow Christians living in the West to take time to develop a more realistic appreciation of their predicament. We ask our political leaders to exert more pressure where it can protect these Churches, many of which have survived centuries of hardship but now stand on the verge of disappearing completely.”
The members of the Consultation also continued their study of the role of the laity in the two churches and the intermediate or regional levels of ecclesial authority. A paper on the Catholic theology of the parish by Sister of Charity of Leavenworth Susan K. Wood of Marquette University was presented in her absence. Father Patrick Viscuso of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America delivered a paper, “Canonical Reflections on the Orthodox Parish.” Father Nicholas Apostola of the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese in the Americas presented a study, “The Role of the Laity in the Church,” and Chorbishop John D. Faris, pastor of St. Louis Gonzaga Maronite Church in Utica, New York, presented a paper, “Synodal Governance in the Eastern Catholic Churches.”
The Consultation also welcomed a new Orthodox member, Despina D. Prassas, Ph.D., associate professor of theology at Providence College in Providence, Rhode Island.
The next meeting is slated to take place at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Massachusetts, June 5-7.
Additional Orthodox members include Rev. Dr. Thomas FitzGerald, dean of the Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Massachusetts; Father John Erickson, former dean and professor of canon law and church history at Saint Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in Crestwood, New York; Father James Dutko, pastor of St. Michael’s Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Church in Binghamton, New York; Susan Ashbrook Harvey, Ph.D., of Brown University; Paul Meyendorff, Ph.D., Alexander Schmemann professor of liturgical theology and editor of Saint Vladimir’s Theological Quarterly, Crestwood, New York; Bishop-Elect Alexander Golitzin, professor of theology at Marquette University, Milwaukee; Robert Haddad, Ph.D., Sophia Smith professor emeritus of history at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts; Father Robert Stephanopoulos, pastor emeritus of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, New York; Father Theodore Pulcini, associate professor of religion at Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania; and Father Mark Arey, general secretary of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA), New York, staff.
Additional Catholic members are Jesuit Father Brian Daley (secretary), Catherine F. Huisking professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame; Thomas Bird, Ph.D., of Queens College, City University of New York, Flushing, New York; Sylvain Destrempes, Ph.D., faculty of the Grand Seminaire in Montreal; Father Peter Galadza, Kule Family professor of liturgy at the Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Institute of Eastern Christian Studies, Ottawa; Father John Galvin, professor of Systematic Theology, The Catholic University of America (CUA); Father Sidney Griffith, professor in the Department of Semitic and Egyptian Languages and Literatures, CUA; Father Joseph Komonchak, professor emeritus of religious studies at CUA; Monsignor Paul McPartlan, Carl J. Peter professor of systematic theology and ecumenism at CUA; Father David Petras, spiritual director and professor of liturgy at the Byzantine Catholic Seminary of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, Pittsburgh; Vito Nicastro, Ph.D., associate director of the Office for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, Archdiocese of Boston; and Paulist Father Ronald Roberson, Ph.D., associate director of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, staff.
FULL TEXT of the joint statement follows:
Statement of the North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation
October 29, 2011
Washington, DC
The Plight of Churches in the Middle East
The “Arab Spring” is unleashing forces that are having a devastating effect on the Christian communities of the Middle East. Our Churches in Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine report disturbing developments such as destruction of churches and massacres of innocent civilians that cause us grave concern. Many of our church leaders are calling Christians and all people of good will to stand in solidarity with the members of these ancient indigenous communities. In unity with them and each other, we the members of the North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation, gathered October 27-29, 2011, add our voice to their call.
We are concerned for our fellow Christians who, in the face of daunting challenges, struggle to maintain a necessary witness to Christ in their homelands. United with them in prayer and solidarity, we ask our fellow Christians living in the West to take time to develop a more realistic appreciation of their predicament. We ask our political leaders to exert more pressure where it can protect these Churches, many of which have survived centuries of hardship but now stand on the verge of disappearing completely.
When one part of the body suffers, all suffer (cf. 1 Cor. 12:26). As Christians in the West, we therefore have the vital responsibility to respond to the needs of our brothers and sisters who live in fear for their lives and communities at this moment. As Orthodox and Catholic Christians we share this responsibility and this concern together.
November 4th, 2011, 12:04 pm
ann said:
As UAE Prosecutes Online Critics, Ban Does Not Raise to FM, Instead Syria & Iran
November 3, 2011
http://www.innercitypress.com/ban1uae110411.html
UNITED NATIONS, November 4 — Amid crackdowns throughout Middle East on not only physical but also intellectual opposition, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon seems to focus on the former.
On November 3, Inner City Press asked Ban’s Deputy Spokesman Eduardo Del Buey
Inner City Press: In the UAE there is a trial of five on-line activists. They have been put on trial in what’s called the UAE five case for insulting UAE Government officials in an on-line forum, and Amnesty International and a variety of groups have said that the trial is a travesty and that international organizations should speak against it. I am wondering if anyone in the UN system is observing that trial, do you have any statement on the UAE putting essentially bloggers on trial for their speech.
Deputy Spokesperson: No, we have no statement on that yet. If we have anything, we will let you know.
While Ban’s Spokesperson has yet to issue any statement on the UAE’s so-called “Franz Kafka” blogger trial, the Office did put out a read-out of Ban’s meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 meetings in Cannes with the UAE’s foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahya, with no mention of the trail or crackdowns by the UAE.
Instead, Ban says he discussed Syria and “they also discussed the situation in Iran.” What about the situation in the UAE?
Inner City Press also asked about Ban’s whirlwind stop off in Libya on his way to the G-20 meeting in Cannes:
Inner City Press: Yesterday I asked you, maybe you have an answer now, when the Secretary-General flew to Libya — he has now left so there is no security concerns — on whose aircraft did he fly? Did he fly commercial?
Deputy Spokesperson: He flew, he and the delegation flew from here to Frankfurt on commercial aircraft, and then from Frankfurt to Libya on a UN-chartered aircraft; and then from Libya to Nice on a UN-chartered aircraft.
Inner City Press: just contracted out, paid?
Deputy Spokesperson: To the best of my knowledge, yes… A UN-chartered aircraft.
There are mounting questions about the costs and manner of Ban Ki-moon’s travels. Watch this site.
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Click here for Sept 23, ’11 BloggingHead.tv about UN General Assembly
Click for Mar 1, ’11 BloggingHeads.tv re Libya, Sri Lanka, UN Corruption
November 4th, 2011, 12:18 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
Our prayer goes out for the Christian Communities in the Middle East and Copts of Egypt. The Bible foretold of the days of your suffering on the hand of the deceivers. Just imagine what Syria will have looked like if you all have left. My wall is full of beautiful memories of the time at the Jesuits school in Homs, my favorite, is the Sur Majustine had me in her lap and feeding me wild berries, after scolding me harshly for picking it up from the dirt under the tree. That was Syria before the Bedouins and the two humps slobbering Turkmen camels decided we need their reforms.
November 4th, 2011, 12:23 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
Nice video of the Choir of St. Ephriam’s Syriac Church (Aleppo) singing a national unity song, pro-regime of course:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFPYmxA2OLM
When I wanted to advertise that video and something like it earlier this year, something in the back of my mind said “don’t bother with it because Christians are too small in numbers to be relevant; it’d be ghetto-izing the image the regime’s support”. It’s still true that Christians are basically irrelevant. However, last Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s big pro-regime rallies in Deir Ezzor city and Raqqa city, where about 30% of the crowds were female and about 75% of the females were wearing hijabs, disspells any remaining concern about ghetto-ized support. In case you missed the videos of those rallies here they are again:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfZmAdqwvzg (deir ezzoor)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eewSUcG4LS0 (deir ezzoor)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTkXRPBWdQo (deir ezzoor)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYvB62Odp6U (raqqa)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwDxDsLU4_I (raqqa)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK842fP5UxY (raqqa)
At the end of the video of the choir of St. Ephriam’s Syriac Church, there is the slogan “Souria bekhair” = “Syria is fine”. I am very very confident that this slogan is a factually correct statement and is not wishful thinking. I haven’t seen anything from anti-regime commenters at SyriaComment or elsewhere this past month that weakens my confidence. Among other things, I take comfort from the lack of a challenge to the litany of supporting facts I gave at #125 above — https://www.joshualandis.com/blog/?p=12509&cp=all#comment-281318
The atrocities in Homs are not sustainable.
November 4th, 2011, 12:29 pm
Revlon said:
Current President of the SNC, Burhan Ghlioun’s reponses to critics
برهان غليون يوجه رسالة للذين ينتقدون المجلس الوطني
2011/11/04نشر فى: غير مصنف
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zc_DOizxqiM
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35055
رد الدكتور برهان غليون على الذبن ينتقدون المجلس الوطني بالنقاط التالية :
1.
المجلس الوطني السوري يمثل معظم الأطياف الرئيسية للشعب السوري .
1. SNC represents most of the spectrum of Syrian society
2.
ولادته بالخارج لا تعني أن المؤسسين من الخارج وإنما أكثرهم من الداخل .Although established in exile, most of its members live on the ground.
3.
اللذين لم يشاركوا مثل هيئة التنسيق الوطنية وبعض الأحزاب الكردية وهيثم مناع وعمار قربى وصبحي حديدي ووحيد صقر وأيضا تجمع العلويين الأحرار ، هم لم يرفضوا المشاركة ولكن طلبوا بعض الوقت للتشاور وأماكنهم محفوظة في المجلس ، والمجلس هيئة مفتوحة لضم كافة أطياف المعارضة .
Other opposition forces and personalities, such as the national coordination assembly, manna3, Qrabi, Hadidi, and Free Alawi Coalition have not refused to join the SNC; They have merely asked for more time for consultation
4.
الإسلاميون والإخوان ليسوا أكثر عددا من العلمانيين ، والأسماء ستصدر قريبا ، والمجلس ليس محاصصة وإنما يضم الفاعلين على الساحة السورية .
Islamists do not outnumber seculars; Names shall be published soon.
5.
المجلس لا يدعو للتدخل العسكري ، ولكن يطلب حماية للمدنيين ، وهذا يعني إجبار الحكومة السورية على استقبال مراقبين دوليين إلى سوريا ، وهناك آليات كثيرة لذلك .
The council does not call for military intervention but for civilian protection, by forcing the regime to allow international observors and other rlated mechanisms.
6.
يدين المجلس سياسات النظام الذي تدعو للتدخل العسكري وللحرب الأهلية ، ولكنه لا يؤيد التدخل العسكري .
The council condemns the regime’s policies that invite military intervention and civil war.
7.
لن نقبل من أحد التدخل في شؤوننا ، دون أخذ رأي المجلس الوطني .
8.
يجب أن نعبيء الرأي العالمي من أجل الضغط لوقف العنف في سوريا وليس التدخل العسكري
We need to mass the world opinion to halt violence against civilians and not for military intervention.
_________________________________________________________________
Personal comment:
Mr Ghalyoon still believes that the regime will surrender peacefully, something the constituency he owes his legitimacy to completely disagrees with.
A leader should either heed his consituencies advice or explain and earn their approval ‘to heed his!
Ghalioun has done neither!
__________________________________________________________________
November 4th, 2011, 12:40 pm
Revlon said:
Sorry to wake you up moderator!
I have made five or more posts over the last couple of hours.
All are still being moderated!
Is there a problem in my account?
I encountered this same problem yesterday; It got resolved within one hour after complaining!
Here I go again; I complain!
November 4th, 2011, 12:44 pm
5 dancing shlomos said:
89. zoo said: “After a period of calm, the dogs are barking again. Poll shows strong Israeli support for Iran attack”
these same diseased dogs were barking for iraq, pakistan, libya. they always bark for lebanon, syria.
dogs are dogs.
November 4th, 2011, 12:52 pm
Revlon said:
We, army soldiers, hereby announce our defection from Asad mob forces to join the Free Syrian Army.
We have formed the phalange of the martyrs of freedom, in Horan region.
We hereby pledge to dedicate our selves to the protection of peaceful demonstrators from Asad mob.
Viva proud free Syria
Assalamu 3alaykom
04/11/2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TvHBp_NdHU&feature=player_embedded
الجيش السوري الحر اعلان تشكيل كتيبة شهداء الحرية
November 4th, 2011, 1:00 pm
Ghat Al Bird said:
@241.
Talk about clowns and their pathetic realities a la zionism.
Agudath Israel of America, Rabbinical Council of America come under fire after rabbi says abuse should be reported to rabbis, not police.
NEW YORK – Two Orthodox Jewish groups have released statements attempting to clarify their positions on reporting child abuse.
Agudath Israel of America and the Rabbinical Council of America were responding to what the former called “misleading claims about our stance on reporting suspected child abusers to law enforcement agencies.”
The statements come in the wake of criticism over comments by a leading American Orthodox rabbi, Shmuel Kamenetsky, that abuse should be reported to rabbis rather than police. Kamenetsky is the vice president of Agudah’s Supreme Council of Rabbinic Sages.
Agudah in its statement referred to rabbinic arguments that authorities should be notified when a certain threshold of evidence is met, but “where the circumstances of the case do not rise to threshold level … the matter should not be reported to authorities.”
However, in order to distinguish whether the threshold has been met, the statement continued, “the individual shouldn’t rely exclusively on their own judgment … rather, he should present the facts to a Rabbi.”
Kamenetsky said in a speech July 12 in Brooklyn — while a search was being conducted for an 8-year-old Brooklyn boy, Leiby Kletzky — that the sexual abuse of a child should be reported to a rabbi, who then would determine if the police should be called. Leiby’s dismembered body was found the following day in a dumpster and in the apartment of Levi Aron, who has been indicted for murder.
The speech came under criticism after a recording appeared July 17 on the Failed Messiah blog, which reported that Kamenetsky was repeating Agudah’s official policy banning Jews from reporting sexual abuse to police.
In the recording, Kamenetsky corrects a man who begins a question to the rabbi by saying, “As far as I know, your yeshiva is of the opinion that victims should report these crimes to the authorities.”
“Only after speaking to a rav,” Kamenetsky said.
Survivors for Justice, an advocacy, educational and support organization for survivors of sexual abuse and their families from the Orthodox world, described Kamentsky’s comments as “dangerous,” and called on Agudah to issue a retraction.
The RCA in its statement said that “Consistent with Torah obligations, if one becomes aware of an instance of child abuse or endangerment, one is obligated to refer the matter to the secular authorities immediately, as the prohibition of mesirah (i.e., referring an allegation against a fellow Jew to government authority) does not apply in such a case.”
November 4th, 2011, 1:02 pm
Revlon said:
4 soldiers defect in Baniyas, and join the FSA.
أوغاريت بانياس , انشقاق 4 جنود 2 11 2011
November 4th, 2011, 1:05 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
Attack on Iran is not in Israel national best interests, peace with Iran, Lebanon and Syria is. It is maybe in the Bedouin or Turkmen. The money masters and the military industrial conglomerates in the West pushing the little underdogs, the hired help in Israel to demanded it, they feel obligated to bark war on Iran because they were paid billions in the past and to continue to receive more and higher tech weapon they have to perform something in return for what the hired servants received.
November 4th, 2011, 1:06 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
When it comes to oppressive regimes in the Middle East, none would stand out more than the two Baathist ones. Western backed regime of Saddam’s, not only beyond repressive, but pure murderous one, and the most ignorant of all dictatorial regimes ever existed. Syria’s Baathist are a notch better, at least they are smart and less murderous, but that is only because Alawite lead it and they worked hard on balancing Syria’s sectarian landscape. Even Syria’s Baathist were not as clean before when the Sunni Moslems led the Baath party, it was a perfect copy of Saddam’s murderous machine. Needless to list the crimes committed by them devils old Baathists, which everyone (Syrian) here knows all about it.
In Syria, a country that maintained this one party oppressive rule, in a nation that endured 50 years of repression, one that pushed it ever lower into the lowest ranking on every measure among the nations, you would think that it will be a piece of cake to convince the nation populace of the change needed.
And it was, SNP had a peaceful plan and the will to move forward on a peaceful campaign to convince President Assad to carry out the reforms needed, unfortunately, SNP spirits devout of the Islamic genocidal tendencies that matches perfectly with NATO atrocities making quality, so naturally NATO opted to work with like minded people to bring about a change of regime in Syria, one that befits not necessarily what Syrians will wants but what the genocidal maniac would like to see there, and they found the Moslem brotherhood, Qatari, Turks and Saudi Moslem Alciada terrorists qualified for the job of bringing reforms, democracy and freedom to Syria and leading the country, those were worthy of NATO / US support.
Nine months of hell in Syria and all you see is something like 18,000 prisoners, 4,000 dead and daily parades of videos and bragging, parading of innocent poor, hard working Syrian laborers and servicemen dragged out of mini busses and slaughtered in Islamic/NATO Reptilian styled genocide. This is not the advancement into reforms which the Syrians needed or intended in the first place. No one can brag about removing the various oppressive laws that Assad vacated, you still have the same arbitrary arrest and killing, even more so than before.
It seems that the real intent was not reforms after all, but genocide and mayhem in Syria. After Libyan 15,000 paid mercenaries relocation to Turkey, look for more of the NATO Signature Reptilian Genocide. But don’t put too much hope into liberating Syria from Baathist, it is more like the mass grave yards of those 15k mercenaries were intended by NATO to be in northern Syria. Syrians will be proud to be the disposal junkyard of humanity filth, so the new order can start with lesser ignorant people around.
The imbeciles that NATO managed to put together to bring change into Syria had an easy job, easier than a rat munching on crumb of cheese, with 50 years of Baathist oppression, a destitute population, menial economy and revolutions all around them, it was a piece of sweet chocolate mousse to get Assad to change Syria for the good and better, a walk in the park, no more, but you got to have the people with the brain to do it, even Syrian-Israeli peace was could have been in reach, which will change the Middle East, not necessarily for NATO Colonials liking. But God protected Syria, the dim wits managed to assembly by NATO, after nine months of terror campaign, they managed one and only accomplishment, pushed the entire Syrian population that had it with the Baathist regime back into the regime lap to stand united against the dim witted idiots that brought them all that mayhem. You got to be a real certifiable dummy to have had this bit of easy work fouled up so miserably bad. And it gets worse from here, not for the Syrians, for the dummies.
November 4th, 2011, 1:08 pm
Revlon said:
Actor Fares AlHilou on his pariticipation in, and chanting in anti-regime demonstration in Midan, Damscus:
They were memorable moments; I felt as if I just heard my voice for the first time in my life!
I later received serious threats.
فنان سوري: تلقيت تهديدًا بالتصفية بعد تظاهري ضد نظام الأسد
2011/11/04نشر فى: ثقافة وفنون
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35012
قال الفن…ان السوري فارس الحلو إنه تعرض لمضايقات وتهديدات بالتصفية، بعد مشاركته مؤخرًا بمظاهرة الميدان ضد النظام السوري.
وأضاف الحلو، في تصريحات خاصة لـmbc.net، إنه تلقى أيضًا شتائم بذيئة وإهانات على جواله، وكذلك على صفحته على “الفيس بوك”، موضحًا أنه لم يُستدعى للتحقيق من قبل أية جهة أمنية سورية، بعد مظاهرة الميدان التي شارك فيها فنانون ومثقفون سوريون، واعتقل الأمن السوري على إثرها بعض المشاركين.
في الوقت نفسه، نفى الفنان السوري تصريحات نسبتها له بعض المواقع بعد مظاهرة الميدان قال فيها إن هتافه بإسقاط النظام أهم صوت خرج من حنجرته.
ولفت الحلو إلى أن التصريح الوحيد الذي صدر عنه كان من خلال صفحته الخاصة على “الفيس بوك”.
وقال: “بعد خروجي في مظاهرة “الميدان” كتبت على صفحتي الشخصية على “الفيس بوك” مقالاً بعنوان “أيها المحبون الرائعون.. شكرًا لكم”، ولم أدل بأي تصريح لأية محطة فضائية أو إذاعة أو أية وسيلة إعلامية.
كان الفنان السوري كتب في مقالة نشرها على صفحته الخاصة قال فيها: “كنا قلة قليلة وقلقة، وما إن وصلنا حتى دُهشت من حجم المجموعة وقد كبرت.. كثر انضموا لها، صرنا في وسطها شباب وفتيات أغلبهم لا أعرفهم، فجأة صدح صوت سماوي لأحد الشجعان بهتاف البدء ولتردد وراءه الحناجر الذهبية، هي يا لله هي بالله ما منركع غير لألله.. وليعقبه بهتافات تنفي الطائفية والإثنية لصالح الحرية والمدنية، وهتافات لإسقاط النظام والتعاضد مع المحافظات والبلدات الثائرة”.
وجاء أيضًا في مقالة الحلو: “لحظات لا تنسى.. كأني أسمع صوتي للمرة الأولى مع قشعريرة رقيقة جعلت عيناي تدمعان كأني اسمع صوتي لأول مرة، كانت التظاهرة كعرس يختال على جنبات السوق المزدحمة بالناس”.
November 4th, 2011, 1:21 pm
jad said:
Today at least 9 people were killed in the protests, assuming many of them by the security forces, BUT, to add the 100+ Homsis killed in the last 48 hours mostly by terrorists armed gangs and mostly Alawites then sum them together in an article mentioning nothing about how the 100+ people were killed and by whom, is a f**ked up journalism and has nothing to do with reality or human rights, yet they whine that the regime doesn’t allow such BS journalism to report from inside Syria, and Lyce Ducet get offended when the guy in the street told her that you are bunch of liars!
———————
“Syria: Homs military attacks continue, say activists
The BBC’s Jonathan Head: “Doctors in Homs… say that in the past 48 hours they’ve collected more than 100 bodies”
Syrian military forces have resumed attacks in the city of Homs, activists say, despite agreeing to withdraw from urban areas under an Arab League deal.
Tanks have been shelling parts of the city, and medics at the main hospital told the BBC more than 100 bodies had arrived in the past two days.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-15588250
——————-
November 4th, 2011, 1:22 pm
Revlon said:
“Daughter of Latakia’s memories of Shabbeeha in the 80’s and 90’s”
by: Rosa Yasin Hasan
ابنة الساحل تتحدث عن ذكرياتها عن الشبّيحة وسادتهم لكن بلون الخوف!
2011/11/04نشر فى: مقالات وتحليلات
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35043
(إلى مدينتي اللاذقية: أيّ قدر وسمَك بكلّ هذه الذاكرة!!)
حين أتى “أبو رمّاح” إلى حارتنا في مدينة اللاذقية كانت تبدو سيماء (التّشبيح) عليه: رأس محلوق ولحية طويلة غير مشذبة وكرش ولباس مموّه!. كنا في أواخر الثمانينيات وقتذاك، وكانت الأيام تبدو كأنها قطعة منسية من فيلم تراجيدي قديم بالأسود والأبيض.
بدأ بإخراج كراسيه إلى الحارة واستقبال ضيوفه هناك، وبالتالي كان يعلّق ساخراً على الرائح والغادي أياً كان. ولطالما سخر مني وأنا أنوء بثقل أكياس السكر والرز قادمة من طابور طويل أمام المؤسسة الاستهلاكية. ثم صار يصفّ سياراته في الحارة، ومن بعد غرز ثلاثة قضبان حديدية ثخينة على باب الحارة وبينها سلاسل معدنية فأغلق الحارة تماماً! ولم يجرؤ أحد حتى اليوم على سؤاله: “من أين أتيت بهذا الحق؟”.. مع الزمن صار اسم الحارة “حارة أبو رمّاح”، حتى نحن كنّا ندلّ رفاقنا على بيتنا: “في البناية الملاصقة لحارة أبو رمّاح.. عرفتها؟!”.. مع مرور الوقت كذلك زرع “أبو رمّاح” نباتاته في الحارة ونصب شادراً دائماً ومراجيح لأطفاله، فقد صارت الحارة حقاً مكتسباً له، كما صار البلد حقاً مكتسباً للشبّيحة أمثاله وأسيادهم.
أعتقد أن سنوات الثمانينيات وأوائل التسعينيات تلحّ على الكثيرين من أبناء مدينتي اللاذقية، كما تلحّ عليّ في الآونة الأخيرة، ربما لأن الكثير مما يحدث اليوم شبيه إلى حدّ بعيد بما حصل في ذلك الوقت: الخوف، الترقب، الحذر.. والشبيحة.
الشبيحة كانوا مرافقين لطفولتي ومراهقتي، ولسوء الحظ كانت المنطقة التي نسكن فيها مليئة ببنايات يتراكم الشبيحة أمام بواباتها ليل نهار. لم أفهم البتة، كما لا أفهم اليوم، ما السبب الكامن وراء كل تلك الغطرسة والكبرياء و”الاستفشار” الذي ينثال منهم، والذي لا يجاهدون لإخفاءه أمام أي شخص كبر أم صغر. ولطالما رأيت رجالاً محترمين يمرّون من أمامهم، وهم يحتلون رصيفاً ما، مطرقين إلى الأرض ومهرولين خوفاً، وإن سمعوا بآذانهم شتائم أو عبارات ساخرة منهم سيتظاهرون بأنهم لم يسمعوها.
سيبدو طبيعياً للغاية أن نرى مجموعة منهم يتسابقون بسياراتهم في شوارع المدينة الضيقة وبأقصى سرعة، يروّعون الناس بإطلاق النار في الهواء
. في أوائل التسعينيات مثلاً حدثت حرب في شارع 8 آذار، وهو من أكبر شوارع المدينة، لأن شبيحة “بيت مخلوف” وشبيحة “بيت ديب” اختلفوا وراحوا يطلقون النار على بعضهم. قتل رجلان وامرأة كان القدر الظالم قد جعلهم يمرون هناك في ذلك الوقت، ومرّت الحادثة كأنها لم تمرّ
!!
كان من الطبيعي أيضاً أن يُعجب أحد الشبيحة بسيارة جديدة لأحد شباب المدينة، فيلحقون بها وينزلونه منها ثم يأخذونها تاركينه مذهولاً ومرعوباً في وسط الشارع. أو يعجب أحدهم أيضاً بفتاة جميلة فيختطفها إن لم تقبل الخروج معه من تلقاء نفسها، وحدث ولا حرج عن بيوت دوهمت واختطف من فيها، وما إلى ذلك من حكايات تكاد تقارب الخيال لكنها واقع حقيقي تشهد عليه ذاكرة (اللوادقة) حتى اليوم.
أستاذي في الجامعة “سمير غفر” قتل في أوائل التسعينيات وهو واقف على موقف الباص، مع ثلاثة رجال وامرأة حامل، لأن هناك سيارة مسعورة لم يستطع سائقها التحكم بها، ولم يعاقب ذلك السائق/ الشبّيح بالتأكيد. كنا لا نجرؤ على الحديث عنه خوفاً من “الجدران التي لها آذان” على الرغم من أن أحاديث مرعبة عن رأسه التي فصلت عن جسده كانت تتطاير هنا وهناك.
صديقي في الجامعة “حسان الأعسر” قتل أيضاً لأنه دافع عن فتاة التجأت إليه في باص الدولة، وكان عدد من الشباب/ الشبيحة يطاردونها. هو الآخر غيّبناه عن أحاديثنا خوفاً لكن صورة السكين التي انغرزت في كتفه ووصلت القلب لم تغادر ذاكرتي.. والد حسان غادر البلاد بعد تلك الحادثة من غير رجعة.
أما “هالة العاقل” فاسم مازالت اللاذقية تهرج بقصته، وهي فتاة اختطفها الشبّيحة واغتصبوها، ثم ألقوها عارية ومقتولة أمام باب بيت أهلها.
كان يمكن لأي معاون باص أن يهين أي راكب دون أن يستطيع الأخير “الخائف” الرد لأن المعاون من الشبيحة، وكان يمكن لأي جاهل أن يروّع حياً بأكمله دون أن يجرؤ أحد على الرد لأنه (منهم).
الشبيحة وسادتهم كانوا القانون والدولة، وهم الزعماء وهم “الفصل والحكم”.
أرى الشبيحة اليوم ينتشرون من جديد في شوارع المدن السورية، وليس في شوارع مدينتي فحسب، يشيعون الرعب أينما حلوا وكأنهم استيقظوا من سباتهم، لكن هذه المرة وجدوا لأنفسهم وظيفة جديدة، شكروا ربهم عليها، وهي ضرب المتظاهرين وتخويف المعارضين والناشطين وتفريغ تلك الشحنة الطاغية بداخلهم، خصوصاً وأنهم صاروا يُلبسون المهمة غايات وطنية، بما أنهم وأسيادهم يحتكرون المواطنة والوطن.
اليوم هناك الآلاف من “أبو رماح” يصولون ويجولون، وفي الكثير من المناطق السورية لم يحتج رجال الأمن أو الجيش للتدخل في قمع المظاهرات فقد قام الشبيحة بالواجب من كل قلبهم.
ما يحدث اليوم ليس بجديد أبداً!! إنه نتاج سنوات طويلة مضت من التراكم، ولأنه كذلك فهو يحتاج إلى فضح وتهديم تلك الذاكرة المتجذرة فينا: ذاكرة الخوف.
(ملاحظة: كنت قد كتبت قبلاً عن “أبو رمّاح” باسم مغاير مخافة أن يصل إليه الأمر بطريقة ما، تستطيعون بالتالي أن تتخيلوا إلى أين وصل فينا تراكم الخوف!!)
November 4th, 2011, 1:33 pm
Revlon said:
اعتقال نجل المعارض مامون الحمصي
Son of political refugee and activist Mamoun AlHomsi has been arrested by security forces in Syria today, while on his way back from college.
2011/11/04نشر فى: أخبار محلية
زمان الوصل
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35004
أعلن المتحدث باسم الجالية السورية في القاهرة الناشط والمعارض السوري مأمون الحمصي أن قوات الأمن السورية اعتقلت مساء أمس الأول نجله (ياسين) في مدينة حمص خلال عودته من الجامعة.
وقال الحمصي في تصريح للصحافيين إن أبناءه الذي يقيمون في سوريا ممنوعون من مغادرة البلاد للالتحاق به في الخارج وإنه يعتبر اعتقال نجله وصمة عار جديدة في جبين النظام السوري.
وأوضح الحمصي أن دبابات الجيش السوري تقصف دون هوادة مدينة حمص وأن السكان هناك معرضون للإبادة. معتبراً أنه لا جدوى لأي حوار مع النظام القائم.
وأشار إلى أن عملية اعتقال نجله هي وسيلة جديدة للعقاب من النظام للضغط على رموز المعارضة لإثنائهم عن معارضته والخضوع له وهذه محاولات مرفوضة من جانب كل الشرفاء
November 4th, 2011, 1:41 pm
ann said:
Russian Writer: Ongoing Events in Syria Created by Armed Gangs Linked to the Outside
Nov 04, 2011
http://www.sana.sy/eng/22/2011/11/04/379953.htm
MOSCOW, SANA_ Russian poet, Alexander Bobrov said that Syria is the heart of the East and the cradle of civilizations.
In an article published on Friday in the Russian daily, Sovetskaya Rossiya, Bobrov, who recently visited Syria within a media delegation, said that he, along with the delegation’s members, had felt the support of the Syrian people to their army and their rejection of violence.
He added that the Syrians are determined to restore calm and stability to the country and to end the events caused by armed gangs linked to the outside.
Bobrov said that the events in Syria had claimed many civilian and military lives.
The writer focused on the reforms adopted by Syria in different political and economic fields, pointing to the government’s efforts to improve the living conditions of the citizens.
November 4th, 2011, 1:41 pm
jad said:
Bronco,
I read couple days ago that (Mr. Adnan Bakkour was killed somewhere in a ‘foreign’ country (Turkey I guess) in a suspicious circumstances) I didn’t read about this news anywhere else so it might be nothing but a rumor, however, if it is a real news, why we are not reading anything about who did murder him?
November 4th, 2011, 1:44 pm
ann said:
Israel’s threats endanger Abbas’ life: official – 2011-11-5
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.asp?id=28333
RAMALLAH, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) — A senior Palestinian official addressed a letter on Friday to the international community saying that the recent Israeli threats to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas “would endanger his life.”
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said in a letter addressed to members of the UN Security Council and all countries in the world that the Palestinians reject the Israeli campaign of incitement against President Abbas.”
“This policy of incitement and the aggressive assault of the Israeli government and its Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman would endanger President Abbas’ life and undermine the peace process,” said Erekat.
Although the International Quartet Committee for peace in the Middle East have been urging the two sides to resume the peace talks, the Palestinians still insist that there will be no resumption of talks until Israel halts settlement construction.
Erekat called on the international community to protect the Palestinian people and exert a pressure on Israel to stop all settlement activities, mainly in east Jerusalem.”
“The Jewish settlement building has become the Israeli tool to undermine the peace process and the principle of the two states in accordance to the borders of 1967,” said Erekat.
Two weeks ago, Liberman had said that if Abbas wants to resign, he can and Israel won’t feel sorry for him because he is an obstacle to peace and he is not the man of peace who acts against Israel.
November 4th, 2011, 2:07 pm
ann said:
*** ISLAMIST TERRORISTS FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY ***
EU election watchdog urged Tunisia to release voting results
2011-11-5
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.asp?id=28332
TUNIS, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) — The European Union’s observation mission has urged Tunisia’s independent electoral commission to release “without delay” the results of the country’s Constituent Assembly elections, the official press agency TAP reported Friday.
The EU mission said it was “concerned” by the fact the preliminary election results had not been published on Oct. 27. It also noted Tunisia’s electoral body invalidated party lists in six electoral districts, without providing any explanation.
The mission, which monitored the electoral campaign and the voting for Tunisia’s constituent assembly on Oct. 23, is still in the country to monitor the post-election phase. More than 600 international observers have been involved in the observation of the elections, the first in Tunisia since the ouster of President Zine el Abidine Ben Ali early this year.
November 4th, 2011, 2:12 pm
Tara said:
Bronco @209
20 civillians per the LCC and the observatory for Human Rights.
http://articles.cnn.com/2011-11-03/middleeast/world_meast_syria-unrest_1_local-coordination-committees-syrian-observatory-arab-league?_s=PM:MIDDLEEAST
The syrian regime can not contest the report as long as free press is not allowed.
November 4th, 2011, 2:12 pm
ann said:
soo what?!
November 4th, 2011, 2:15 pm
ann said:
NATO chief dismisses talk of intervention in Syria conflict
2011-11-5
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/article_xinhua.asp?id=28320
COPENHAGEN, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) — The chief of NATO dismissed suggestions that the military alliance would intervene to stop the conflict in Syria at a press conference here Friday.
“I understand the question, but Libya and Syria are two very different things,” said NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in response to journalists’ questions over why NATO does not intervene in Syria given its operation in Libya, which ended Monday.
“We said ‘yes’ to and undertook responsibility for the operation in Libya because firstly, there was a clear UN mandate to protect the civilian population against attack, secondly because we got active support from countries in the region,” he added.
NATO received a United Nations mandate to impose a no-fly zone over Libya and protect its civilians as well as the backing from the Arab League, but has not received any such approval in Syria’s case, Rasmussen explained.
“Neither of these conditions exist when it comes to Syria. But having said that, I would like to condemn in the strongest possible terms the Syrian security forces’ behavior and their attacks on the civil population,” he said.
Syria has witnessed massive anti-government protests across the country since mid-March and a subsequent crackdown by its armed forces.
Rasmussen went on to say that there is “only one way forward in Syria” and that was to respect the population’s wishes on freedom and democracy.
He added that the case of Libya — where erstwhile leader Muammar Gaddafi was toppled by an opposition revolt along with NATO air strikes — sends a “clear signal to the world’s dictators.”
Rasmussen, who previously served as Denmark’s Prime Minister from 2001-2009, was in Denmark during his tour to meet leaders of NATO member countries.
Here he met Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt for the first time since she was elected to the post in mid-September. The two leaders discussed NATO’s missions in Libya and Afghanistan and the up-coming NATO summit in Chicago, the United States, in May 2012.
Denmark has actively contributed to NATO missions in recent years, including sending six F-16 fighter jets and personnel to the Libya mission. It continues to contribute to the NATO military action in Afghanistan and to a NATO-led anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden.
Yet Rasmussen believed NATO stands at an important juncture. It needs to modernize, but funding constraints owing to financial crisis in the European Union and globally continue to impact how it chooses and undertakes its operations.
He advocated “smarter defense” as a solution, where countries “join forces instead of trying to find purely national solutions” to their defense needs, he said.
Thorning-Schmidt, who hosted the press conference, agreed with Rasmussen’s proposal. “That also interests us in Denmark, and is a good example of how we can strengthen our engagement with NATO,” she said.
November 4th, 2011, 2:24 pm
Mango said:
اسرار زيارة غليون السرية لدمشق تفجر خلافات في مجلسه المعارض
خلافاً شديداً قد نشأ في أوساط هذه المعارضة وخصوصاً بين غليون وبسمة قضماني التي تُعد “المايسترو” التنظيمي للعلاقة بين جهاز المخابرات الأمريكية ونظيره الفرنسي
بات واضحاً أن خلافاً شديداً قد نشأ في أوساط هذه المعارضة وخصوصاً بين غليون وبسمة قضماني التي تُعد “المايسترو” التنظيمي للعلاقة بين جهاز المخابرات الأمريكية ونظيره الفرنسي بخصوص الموضوع السوري، بعد أن كانت بدايات هذا الخلاف قد نشأت فعلياً بعد زيارة غليون لقطر وتسليمه مبلغاً من قبل عزمي بشارة بقيمة 20 مليون يورو لضمان رئاسته للمجلس، دون أن يتم أي تقاسم لهذا المبلغ بين الطرفين.
ونقلت أوساط المعارضة عن مسعود حامد أن المواجهة التي تمت بين بعض أفراد هذا المجلس وغليون كانت حادة للغاية وأن إبراز الوثيقة التي تثبت سفره لدمشق للتنسيق مع الأجهزة السورية قد جعله ينهار طالباً معتذراً عما أسماه غلطة سياسية فيما اعتبرها آخرون خيانة و كشفوا عن زيارته لمنزل تقيم به المدعوة سهير الاتاسي في حمص تحت أنظار الأمن الس
ولم يقل غليون لزميلته عن فحوى زيارته لكنه قال إنه كان خطأ سياسياً لكن أوساطا أخرى من المعارضة واجهته و اعتبرت أن غليون قد أخذ الإذن برئاسة المجلس المذكور خلال زيارته الأخيرة إلا انه حاول دفع التهمة دون جدوى، إذ يكتنف الغموض دواعي زيارته السرية لدمشق، و قال لها إنه يخدم المشروع الأمريكي الذي تحمله بسمة قضماني للترويج لما يسمى بحماية المدنيين عبر التدخل الدولي وهذا يكفيها، وأن اللعب على المكشوف قد بات ضرورياً فليس لها إلا أن تأخذ ما تريد (أي هذا الترويج) وهو يأخذ ما يريد، وليس لها أن تتدخل بالتفاصيل، مما دفع قضماني لمغادرة مكتبه غاضبة.
وتقول أوساط المعارضة أن غليون يلعب على الحبال ويتنقّل بين الترويج للاخوان المسلمين وللتدخل الدولي وبنفس الوقت يحاول التواصل مع النظام في سورية بالزيارات السرية، وتعتبر أنه يعمل مع مخابرات بلده الجديد الذي يكن له ولاءه الأساسي فرنسا بعد ان امضى فيها 43 سنة فيما لم يبق في سورية أكثر من 29 سنة فقط، وأن تسميته رئيساً للمجلس كان بقرار فرنسي-قطري على أن يكون الطرف الأمريكي-الفرنسي ممثلاً ببسمة قضماني
أكراد المجلس الوطني يهددون غليون والقضماني “بالانسحاب” .. والمالح :”أنا نيسلون مانديلا سورية”
برهان غليون وبسمة قضماني يتصرفون بمفردهم ولا يعودون لأعضاء المجلس بشيء .. عبد الحليم خدام يشكل مجلسا وطنيا خاصا به
انفجر غضب الأعضاء الأكراد فيما يسمى بالمجلس الوطني في وجه غليون وقضماني بعد إرسال برقية التعزية من قبلهم لرئيس الوزراء التركي رجب طيب أردوغان إثر العملية التي نفذها حزب العمال الكردستاني ضد الجيش التركي وأسفرت عن مقتل أربعة وعشرين جندياً تركياًَ
حيث وصف الأخيران في البرقية المرسلة إلى اردوغان عملية حزب العمال بالإرهابية. وما إن تناقلت وسائل الإعلام العربية خبر برقية التعزية المذكورة حتى جاء رد الفعل من الأعضاء الأكراد عنيفاً في وجه غليون وقضماني، حيث أعرب هؤلاء عن استنكارهم للبيان متسائلين عمّن أوكل لغليون وقضماني الكلام في قضية حساسة كهذه، وورد في البيان تهديد واضح بترك الأعضاء الأكراد للمجلس الوطني في حال حصل في المستقبل شيء مشابه.
ولم تقتصر مشاكل المجلس المذكور على غضب الأعضاء الأكراد، بل وصلت إلى برهان غليون وباقي أعضاء المجلس من الطامحين إلى رئاسة هذا المجلس، حيث قرر الجمع ممن ضمهم مجلس اسطنبول أن تكون رئاسة المجلس دورية بين الأعضاء كل ستة أشهر، وقد رفض غليون هذا المبدأ مهدداً بالاستقالة، فأتاه الرد ( فليكن، استقل إذا أردت)، وهذا ما جعل غليون يحاول خطب ود المعارض (هيثم المالح) عبر دعوته لتسلم رئاسة لجنة في المجلس بعد أن كان رفض طيلة الفترة السابقة سماع اسم المالح عضواً في المجلس، غير أن ما يتداوله معارضون سوريون في باريس يفيد برفض المالح لعرض غليون.
ويظهر رفض المالح الانضواء تحت عباءة المجلس الوطني ـ وهو الذي يعتبر وجه جماعة الإخوان المسلمين غير المعلن في المعارضة الداخلية ـ انقساماً حاداً بينه وبين الجماعة التي تمثل غالبية في المجلس المذكور، حيث إن المالح يطالب بصراحة بأن تتبناه المعارضة رئيساً مقبلاًَ لسوريا وهو لا يتوقف عن القول (أنا نيلسون مانديلا سوريا) في إشارة إلى دخوله السجن مرات عديدة، بينما تسير قيادة الجماعة حالياً على ما تمليه عليها قطر وتركيا بضرورة تعويم مجلس اسطنبول وإظهار غير الإسلاميين فيه حتى إشعار آخر.
وفي سياق آخر، وعلى نحو مفاجئ, أعلنت مصادر مقربة من عبد الحليم خدام أن الأخير يعتزم انشاء مجلس وطني خاص به، وذلك من خلال الدعوة لعقد مؤتمر لمعارضين سوريين الأسبوع المقبل في باريس. وبحسب المصادر المقربة من خدام، فإن هذا الاجتماع يعقد بموافقة السلطات الفرنسية ورضاها، وهذا أمر مستجد خصوصاً أن فرنسا كانت تمنع خدام خلال السنوات الأخيرة من القيام بأي نشاط سياسي فوق أراضيها ما اضطر الأخير إلى الانتقال إلى بروكسيل كلما أراد الإدلاء بتصريح ضد النظام في سوريا.
ويُرجع مراقبون موافقة فرنسا على الإعلان من أراضيها عن إنشاء مجلس وطني رديف لمجلس اسطنبول إلى الخلافات التي ظهرت في الآونة الأخيرة بين فرنسا وتركيا على خلفية التصريحات التي أدلى بها الرئيس الفرنسي نيكولاي ساركوزي خلال زيارته أرمينيا منذ أسبوعين والتي طالب فيها تركيا بالاعتراف بمسؤوليتها عن مذابح الأرمن، فما كان من المسؤولين الأتراك إلا ان ذكروا ساركوزي بالتاريخ السيئ للاستعمار الفرنسي، كما يبدو أن هناك امتعاضاً فرنسياً من قطر على خلفية الحرج الفرنسي من طلب السلطة الفلسطينية الانضمام للأمم المتحدة، حيث اتهم ساركوزي قطر دون أن يسميها بدفع محمود عباس إلى هذا الخيار، عندما قال في جلسة سابقة لمجلس الوزراء الفرنسي “هناك من أصعد محمود عباس إلى أعلى الشجرة وسحب السلم وتركه بين خيار أن يسقط ويموت أو البقاء عالقاً في مكانه”..
November 4th, 2011, 2:27 pm
Tara said:
Is China’s public opinion tilting against Assad. This is the first time I am reading a pro revolution account in Chineese news media
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/commentary/afp/2011/11/05/321988/Arabs-throw.htm
November 4th, 2011, 2:34 pm
jna said:
Tara…This as not the news media of the People’s Republic of China. It is an AFP article written by a Wissam Keyrouz and it is published by an English language Taiwanese (ROC) newspaper. Not accurate to guage the opinion of mainland Chinese people.
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/commentary/afp/2011/11/05/321988/Arabs-throw.htm
November 4th, 2011, 2:48 pm
Tara said:
Jna, it is clear who wrote it. I have not seen similarly toned article posted there.
November 4th, 2011, 2:58 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
Was today Friday? Yes.
From http://www.facebook.com/Syria.True.News copying from http://www.shukumaku.com/:
“No anti-regime gatherings were reported in the province of Deir Ezzor today Friday.”
That’s not True News. You can see videos of small gatherings in Deir Ezzor today at http://www.onsyria.com/?cat=18&parent=1&page=1
http://www.facebook.com/Syria.True.News copying from http://www.shukumaku.com/:
Correspondent in Idleb: Small anti-regime gatherings took place in Sarmeen, Tiftinaz and Saraqeb and ended soon without any interference from the Syrian security…. Terrorists chanted “Allah Akbar” and threatened to kill everyone who registers himself as a candidate in the upcoming local council elections in Syria.
http://www.facebook.com/Syria.True.News copying from http://www.shukumaku.com/:
Homs: There were clashes this Friday morning between the Syrian army and the terrorists especially in the quarter of “Bab Amr” in Homs city. Seven army soldiers were killed this morning in “Bab Amr”. The situation now is somewhat calm… A few tiny anti-regime gatherings took place in Homs province…
Once again, you can see quite few non-tiny (though smallish) anti-regime gatherings in Homs today at http://www.onsyria.com/?cat=7&parent=1&page=1
http://www.onsyria.com/?cat=8&parent=1&page=1 is a good site to find out what demonstrations took place today Friday 4 November. It is an anti-regime site. You cannot trust it to only put up genuine videos. They put up anything they’re given by anti-regime sources, and then leave it to you to separate the genuine from the bogus. But they organize the videos by each Syrian province, and by date, which is very convenient, and most of their videos are genuine. According OnSyria’s collection, no demonstrations were held in Latakia or Raqqa provinces today. They have from Latakia a video of people coming out of a mosque today — but no demonstration. That is, they sent a cameraman with hopes of filming something, even a small demonstration, and he got nothing.
November 4th, 2011, 3:07 pm
jna said:
Israeli Occupied Terrotory
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/timothy-wirth/let-us-lead_b_1066999.html
November 4th, 2011, 3:17 pm
amal said:
241. Amir from racist tel aviv said:
Jad and the mnhebaks clowns are discussing amnesty. How pathetic and detached from reality can you get?
___________________________________
still srewing your israeli venom on Syria i see!
reality is coming to your neighborhood very soon.
i wouldn’t want to be in tel aviv if i were you.
payback is a b!tch son
November 4th, 2011, 3:20 pm
Evan said:
Big news, Turkey has decided to support war against the regime as the solution for Syria. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8868027/15000-strong-army-gathers-to-take-on-Syria.html
November 4th, 2011, 3:21 pm
Uzair8 said:
Sheikh Yaqoubi of Syria attending Hajj pilgrimage this year. The news was only posted on the Sheikh’s FB page yesterday.
InshaAllah the Sheikh will make a prayer especially for Syria.
November 4th, 2011, 3:27 pm
SYR.EXPAT said:
Few days have passed and it seems that the terrorist Syrian regime has no plans of fulfilling their part of the bargain. Not that I am surprised.
By the way, it very amusing to see people who bombard us with regime propaganda every day whine about international media coverage. Is there a word for that?
November 4th, 2011, 3:40 pm
amal said:
By the way, it very amusing to see people who bombard us with regime propaganda every day whine about international media coverage. Is there a word for that?
yes there is a word for that. it is called MB islamist terrorists
November 4th, 2011, 3:44 pm
SANDRO LOEWE said:
Amazing, Syrian regime is so cool that it is climbing to the Top 10 Charts.
November 4th, 2011, 3:45 pm
Mango said:
http://arabic.rt.com/main_news/news/570863/
لن تقف فرنسا مكتوفة الايدي في حالة نشوء خطر يهدد وجود اسرائيل مباشرة. اعلن هذا الرئيس الفرنسي نيكولا ساركوزي في مؤتمر صحفي في كان اثر اختتام قمة “مجموعة الـ20”.
فقال ساركوزي انه “اذا نشأ خطر يهدد وجود اسرائيل، فان فرنسا لن تقف مكتوفة الايدي. لاننا نعتبر وجود اسرائيل بعد ما حدث ابان الحرب العالمية الثانية، احد عوامل القرن العشرين السياسية الهامة. ولن نقدم اي تنازلات في هذه القضية”.
وبهذا الصدد دحض الرئيس الفرنسي في نفس الوقت، اهمية توجيه ضربة وقائية لايران. وقال ساركوزي ان “الاجراءات ، مثل الضربات الوقائية غير جائزة.. ولا يجوز نسيان، انه لا تزال تتوفر امكانية الحوار. واذا لم يثمر الحوار، يوجد اسلوب العقوبات. واذا تبين ان العقوبات المفروضة غير كافية، تتوفر امكانية فرض عقوبات أخرى. ولا يجوز حل كل شيء بقوة السلاح”.
وذكر بهذا الصدد، بان العمليات العسكرية، التي نفذها المجتمع الدولي في هذه السنة، كانت بتخويل من الامم المتحدة. واشار ساركوزي الى ان “قضية الضربات الوقائية لايناقشها رؤساء الدول والحكومات”. واكد الرئيس الفرنسي انه “بين الضربات الوقائية والعقوبات، كما مفهوم، مسافة طويلة، من الضروري في مثل هذه الحالة اجتيازها”.
ولدى الاجابة عن الاسئلة، انتقد سياسة ايران. واكد ساركوزي ان “سلوكها، اي تمسكها بالسعي لامتلاك السلاح النووي يشكل خرقا لكافة القوانين الدولية. وفرنسا تدين هذه الممارسات بحزم”.
http://www.palpress.co.uk/arabic/?action=detail&id=23447
‘الربيع الفرنسي’ لساركوزي: ارحل!
في أوساط حزبه، كما في أوساط اليمين الفرنسي، لم يعد السؤال حول ما إذا كانت هناك فرصة لفوز الرئيس ساركوزي بولاية ثانية، بل بات السؤال فيما إذا من المبكر ترشيح آخر للفوز بالرئاسة في الانتخابات التي ستجري في نيسان ـ أيار القادم، الشكوك حول إمكانية فوز ساركوزي تتزايد، حتى أن هناك أسماء أخذت تطرح كخيارات بديلة من أهمها وزير الخارجية ألان جوبيه كمرشح حزب الاتحاد من أجل حركة شعبية ‘ممثلاً عن أحزاب اليمين الفرنسي، ومن اللافت أن صحيفتي ‘لوبوان’ و’نوفيل ابوسرفاتور’ التقتا في الحديث وفي يوم واحد عن ‘نهاية حقبة ساركوزي، الأولى تمثل يمين الوسط بينما الثانية تمثل يسار الوسط، وذلك في اليوم الذي اعتلى فيه جان ـ بيار بال منصة الرئاسة في مجلس الشيوخ الفرنسي، وهي المرة الأولى الذي يصل فيه الحزب الاشتراكي إلى هذا المنصب منذ أكثر من 50 عاماً، وعلى الرغم من أن هذا المنصب يعتبر ثانياً، إلاّ أنه بالغ الأهمية باعتبار أن رئيس مجلس الشيوخ يصبح رئيساً للجمهورية في حالة فراغ المنصب الرئاسة لأي سبب كان، إلاّ أن هذا الفوز يكتسب أهمية أكبر من كل ذلك بالنظر إلى أن الانتخابات الرئاسية الفرنسية ستقام بعد سبعة أشهر، وهي فترة غير كافية لإحداث تغيير من شأنه قلب المزاج الجماهيري والرأي العام لصالح الفريق اليميني المقابل.
ووفقاً للدستور الفرنسي، فإن مجلس الشيوخ لا يستطيع إسقاط الحكومة من خلال حجب الثقة عنها، لكنه يستطيع منع إدخال تعديلات على الدستور، كما يمكن له تأجيل تبني تشريعات ومشروعات قوانين لمراجعتها من قبل مجلس النواب، الغرفة الثانية من البرلمان الفرنسي، وهذا الأمر الدستوري قد يعرقل أي إصلاحات ينوي اليمين القيام بها لتحسين صورته أمام الرأي العام في محاولة منه لجسر الهوة الانتخابية مع أحزاب اليسار، خاصة الحزب الاشتراكي الفرنسي.
وفي قراءة لآخر استطلاعات الرأي، يتبين أن ساركوزي ربما سيدخل التاريخ بوصفه الرئيس الذي ضيع لليمين سيطرته على مجلس الشيوخ، بعد وصول الحزب الاشتراكي الفرنسي وحليفه الحزب الشيوعي وحزب الخضر بالأغلبية في المجلس، وبنظر الاستطلاعات التي أشارت بوضوح إلى تدني شعبية ساركوزي حتى في أوساط اليمين الذي دعم نجاحه في الولاية الحالية، إذ إن 54 بالمائة من أعضاء حزب ساركوزي يشكون في إمكانية نجاحه، وهذه النسبة تزيد في أوساط أحزاب اليمين الداعمة له، وتبرر بعض التحليلات هذا التراجع، بسلسلة الفضائح التي لا تزال أمام القضاء لمتورطين من المقربين له، خاصة ما يسمى بملف كراتشي، حول عمولات غامضة في صفقة أسلحة إلى باكستان، وفضيحة خاصة بتمويل الحملة الانتخابية للمرشح الرئاسي اليميني ادوار بالادور العام 1995 كان ساركوزي مشاركاً فيها، وفضائح أخرى تتعلق بالتنصت على اتصالات هاتفية لصحافيين من صحيفة ‘لوموند’ كانوا يحققون في قضايا محرجة للمليارديرة ليليان بيتنكور أغنى أغنياء فرنسا، والتي تهربت من دفع الضرائب هي وعائلتها لعدة عقود، مع معرفة وزير المالية الفرنسي بهذا الأمر، وأصبحت هذه القضية ذات أبعاد سياسية إضافية بعدما اعترفت إحدى المحاسبات في شركة تمويل، بتسليم أموال من قبل المليارديرة إلى ‘اريك وريت’ عندما كان المسؤول المالي في حزب الأغلبية، بهدف تمويل الحملة الانتخابية لنيكول ساركوزي العام 2007، وتبين من تحقيقات صحافية أن هذه المليارديرة العجوز، كانت تحكم بعض الأحيان من وراء ستار، وجاءت عملية التنصت على الصحافيين الذين تابعوا تحقيقات هذه القضية لتجعل منها الفضيحة التي من الممكن أن تسقط اليمين عن عرش فرنسا.
ونتيجة لهذه الملفات الفضائحية التي لم تتجاوزها في الأهمية سوى علاقات بلاط ساركوزي الإيجابية مع القذافي، والتي لم يتم تجاهلها على الرغم من الاندفاعة ‘الدفاعية’ لجمهورية ساركوزي للإطاحة بنظام القذافي الذي دعم مالياً انتخابه في ولايته الأولى، وقد فسرت بعض وسائل الإعلام هذه الاندفاعة المتميزة عن غيرها في حلف ‘الناتو’، بأنها شكل من أشكال رد الفعل ولتبرئة ساركوزي من تحالفاته السابقة مع نظام القذافي، كل ذلك وأكثر من الممكن أن يلحق فرنسا ‘بالربيع العربي’ على الطريقة الفرنسية، أي أن الناخب الفرنسي، هو الذي سيقول لساركوزي ‘ارحل’ وليس من خلال التظاهرات والمليونيات، والناخب الفرنسي، كالناخب الأميركي تقريباً، يحاسب رئيسه على الملفات الداخلية بدرجة أولى، ساركوزي الذي فشل في تنفيذ معظم وعوده في الولاية الأولى، حاول هذه المرة أن يمنح فرنسا بعداً دولياً، كقوة كبرى إن لم نقل عظمى من خلال الأداء المنفعل والمنفصل في كثير من الأحيان عن حلف الأطلسي إزاء تنفيذ قرار مجلس الأمن حول ليبيا، ففرنسا كانت الدولة الأولى التي ترسل بحريتها وطيرانها إلى شواطئ وأجواء ليبيا، وهي التي فسرت قرار مجلس الأمن، كي تقوم قواتها بقصف المقرات التابعة للقذافي، تحت بند حماية الشعب الليبي، وعندما تراجعت واشنطن في بداية تنفيذ حملة ‘الناتو’ على ليبيا، أقدمت فرنسا على خطوات تصعيدية في اطار حلف ‘الناتو’، ولكن من خلال تجاوز كافة الشركاء في هذا الحلف، وكأنها بديل عن الدولة العظمى، أميركا، ويعتقد ساركوزي، وعديد من المحللين السياسيين في فرنسا، أن هذا البعد الدولي، قد يدغدغ بعض مشاعر اليمينيين في فرنسا.
إلاّ أن ساركوزي، على الأرجح، لم يعد يراهن كثيراً على هذا التعامل المرتبط بالسياسة الخارجية، وتصدير فرنسا إلى العالم كقوة حاسمة من خلال التجربة الليبية، فعمد بعد فوز اليسار بالبرلمان إلى العودة إلى الشأن الداخلي، وهو ما يفسر، عودة ساركوزي من إجازته إثر إعلان نتائج الانتخابات البرلمانية، كي يترأس اجتماعاً مصغراً لرئاسة الوزراء، حيث طلب من وزراء المالية والميزانية تدابير جديدة تهدف إلى تقليص العجز بنسبة 5,7% من الناتج المحلي، ثم إلى نسبة 3% العام 2013، وهذا يؤشر إلى إدراك ساركوزي أن أي إصلاح يهدف إلى زيادة شعبيته ينطلق من الواقع الاقتصادي الصعب الذي تعيشه فرنسا، خاصة في ظل أزمات اقتصادية عالمية، وأزمة مالية يعيشها الاتحاد الأوروبي الذي تلعب فرنسا دوراً محورياً فيه.
وكغيره من زعماء بعض دول العالم الغربية، يعتمد ساركوزي على أصوله اليهودية، حيث جاء جده اليهودي المجري من فرنسا قبل حوالي قرن من الزمان، إلا أن أصوات اليهود، كما ظهر في الانتخابات الرئاسية السابقة ليس من الضرورة أن تذهب إليه، فهناك انقسام بين ‘الاشكناز’ (عشرون بالمائة من أصل 700 ألف يهودي فرنسي) يعتبرون ساركوزي يهودياً مهاجراً مثلهم، فقد وصلوا إلى فرنسا قادمين من شمال أفريقيا قبل حوالي مائتي عام، أما يهود فرنسا الأصليون، ‘السفارديم’، فيعتبرون هؤلاء دخلاء على اليهودية الفرنسية، ‘الأشكناز’ سيصوتون لصالح ساركوزي وأي مرشح يميني بديل، أما ‘اليهود الأصليون’ فسيصوتون، كما فعلوا في الانتخابات السابقة، لصالح المرشح المعارض، خاصة إذا كان من الحزب الاشتراكي، تماماً كما حدث في الانتخابات السابقة.
ولكن ماذا عن الصوت العربي؟ هذا السؤال الحائر والباحث عن إجابة سيظل منتصباً إلى حين أن تظهر تأثيرات ‘الربيع العربي’ على المهاجرين والجاليات العربية في الخارج، وقد نبحث في هذا الملف الصعب لاحقاً؟!
November 4th, 2011, 3:46 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
I’m pleased that six people gave a thumbs up sign to the music video I linked to at #247.
I see that yesterday at Youtube someone put up another copy of a pro-regime mawal “Ya Mara Ghalba” that was recorded at Tadmor (in Homs province) in November 2010. Here it is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=4r7ePYXNdCY#t=138s
But I take my nom de plume from a mawal “Ya Mara Ghalba” that was recorded during the week following Friday 29 April 2011. That was the week when Bouthaina Shaaban was able to say that “Syria has passed its hour of danger”. Here it is:
November 4th, 2011, 4:00 pm
amal said:
269. SYR.EXPAT said:
Few days have passed and it seems that the terrorist Syrian regime has no plans of fulfilling their part of the bargain. Not that I am surprised.
the Syrian government will never bargain with blood thirsty MB terrorist.
never
November 4th, 2011, 4:09 pm
Mango said:
تهديدات إسرائيلية لكن… لا حرب على إيران
عبد الوهاب بدرخان – 04/11/2011م –
تحرص إسرائيل على إبقاء البرنامج النووي الإيراني تحت الأضواء، وكثفت أخيراً التهديد بضربة عسكرية للمنشآت النووية في إيران، حتى لو اضطرت إلى التصرف بمفردها.
مع اقتراب الثامن من نوفمبر/تشرين الثاني، الموعد المقرر لنشر تقرير الوكالة الدولية للطاقة النووية عن التقدم الذي أحرزته إيران في برنامجها، تتصاعد التهديدات وتتزايد الجهود الأمريكية لاستبعاد أي عمل عسكري غير منسق.
وما يقلق واشنطن أن التوتر الإسرائيلي بلغ درجة غير مسبوقة. ورغم أن مصادر كثيرة ترى أن التصعيد هو إعلامي أكثر مما هو عسكري، وأنه يرمي على الأقل إلى الضغط على روسيا والصين للموافقة على عقوباتٍ جديدة لإيران، يبدو أن قراءة حكومة بنيامين نتانياهو للوضعَين الدولي والإقليمي أظهرت لها عناصر مشجعة لترجيح دفع الأزمة مع إيران إلى حافة الهاوية.
ثلاثة مشاهد مصرية
إيران النووية و”نفوذها” في سنة أميركية مفصلية
وقد اعتبرت إسرائيل دائماً أنها إذا قامت بالضربة الأولى، فإن إيران ستردّ. وعندئذٍ ستجد الأطراف الدولية نفسها مضطرة للتعامل مع الخطر المستجد.
لكن إذا كانت أمريكا غير موافقة، وإذا كان الجيش وغالبية الفريق الحكومي المصغّر في إسرائيل يرفضون خيار الحرب الآن، لماذا تلعب حكومة نتانياهو هذه اللعبة؟ ولماذا تحاول الحصول على مباركةٍ لها من المؤسسة الدينية؟
الجواب يكمن في مخاوف إسرائيل من انعكاسات العزلة التي تعيشها على المستوى الدولي، ومن مناخ التغيير في العالم العربي واحتمال أن يحقق مكاسب لإيران. لذلك فهي تبحث عن أزمةٍ كبرى تخلط الأوراق وتبدّل مسار الأحداث في المنطقة.
ولعل ما يرجّح هذا التحليل أنّ إدارة باراك أوباما ضعيفة حالياً ويمكن التأثير في قرارها، وأن إيران هي الآن موضع اتهام في عملٍ إرهابي مُفترض ضد الولايات المتحدة والسعودية معاً، فضلاً عن تعاظم المشاعر العربية ضد إيران.
ثم إنّ أي عملٍ حربي محتمل لا بد أن يزعزع موقف الفلسطينيين وسعيهم إلى الاعتراف بدولتهم في الأمم المتحدة، كما أنه سيحرف الأنظار عن الممارسات الانتقامية التي تقوم بها إسرائيل ضد السلطة الفلسطينية.
لكن رغم كل ذلك، ليست هناك عناصر كافية لصنع قضية لحربٍ تنخرط فيها الدول الكبرى، ومن شأنها أن تدخِل منطقة الخليج في مرحلة اضطراباتٍ لا يُعرف متى تبدأ ومتى تنتهي.
November 4th, 2011, 4:12 pm
jad said:
جنون دمويّ لا حراك ثورة تغييري
ابراهيم الأمين
مشاهد الموت الآتية من مناطق حمص وإدلب وحماة لا تشمل هذه المرة صوراً يبثّها محتجّون على مواقع إلكترونية عن تعرّضهم للملاحقة وإطلاق النار من قبل قوات الأمن السورية. حتى الجهات الحقوقية التي تتولى عادة إعلان إحصاءات عن القتلى والجرحى والمعتقلين، باتت تشير بالاسم وبالتوصيف المباشر إلى عمليات القتل الجارية على خلفية طائفية ومذهبية، بينما تورد وكالات الأنباء ما يناسب كلاً منها عن هذه التوترات. لكن ما ينقله الناس من هناك هو أفظع، ويدلّ على أن سوريا قد تُقبل على ما هو أكثر فظاعة إن لم يُتدارك الأمر.
أمس، دعت التنسيقيات إلى تظاهرات اليوم الجمعة، مشدّدة على الطابع السلمي. هي تدعو إلى ذلك منذ اليوم الأول لتشكّلها. لكن الإصرار على الطابع السلمي هذه المرة، يدلّ أيضاً على الخشية الموجودة عند هؤلاء من تعميم صورة العنف التي تسم حركة الاحتجاجات في مناطق عدة من سوريا على كل الحراك الشعبي السوري. والعنف هنا ليس عنفاً من النوع الذي يشير إلى مواجهة بين فئتين أو فئات معروفة الأسماء والوجوه والأهداف، بل هو عنف «الفوضى الدموية» التي يراد لسوريا أن تغرق فيها. وهي فوضى يعرفها العالم جيداً، ويعرفها العراقيون واللبنانيون أكثر من غيرهم من شعوب المنطقة ودولها.
وبينما يركز الكل في سوريا وخارجها على طبيعة المناخات التي ستسود خلال الأسبوعين المقبلين، ربطاً بإعلان التفاهم بين الحكومة والجامعة العربية على مبادرة تهدف إلى حل الأزمة من أساسها، فإن في قلب المشهد اليومي من لديه جدول أعمال آخر. وهذه الفئة لم يعد بالإمكان اعتبارها مجرد مجموعات صغيرة لجأت إلى «العنف الأهلي والعشوائي» رداً على ممارسات السلطات السورية بحق المحتجين، قتلاً واعتقالاً. بل تحولت هذه الفئة إلى حالة تقدر على تنظيم أمورها وعلى اختيار أهدافها وعلى معاينة من سوف تقتلهم، وتقدر على تنفيذ تهديداتها التي لا تصل إلى الفضائيات العربية، وتقوم بعمليات مجنونة من النوع الذي يمكن وصفه بالأعمال التدميرية للمجتمعات الأهلية، حيث يصار إلى عمليات التطهير الطوعي أو القسري لعدد من الأحياء والبلدات. كذلك يصار إلى تكريس فرز على أساس طائفي ومذهبي، بين من يرى نفسه في قلب ثورة تريد إسقاط النظام، وآخرين متهمين بأنهم يدافعون عن النظام. والروايات الآتية من سوريا تتحدث عن طلاب من طوائف معينة طُردوا أو أُبعدوا عن مدارسهم في قرى باتت ذات صفاء طائفي، وتتحدث عن عمليات نزوح من منطقة إلى منطقة هرباً من الانتقام الطائفي الدموي، إضافة إلى الأخبار الساخنة عن الكمائن التي تنصب لحافلات مدنية تقل مسافرين بين المدن، أو موظفين في إدارات رسمية، وحيث يصار إلى فرز الركاب وفق أساس طائفي بغيض، ليصار إلى إطلاق من يجب إطلاقه وقتل من يجب قتله. حتى عمليات القتل تحصل بطريقة وحشية، تعيد صورة القرون الوسطى، أو تلك التي عملت جماعات تكفيرية مجنونة على زرعها في الوعي العام في العراق قبل سنوات.
حتى اللحظة، ليس هناك ما يشير إلى قدرة لأي جهة، بما في ذلك النظام، على الإمساك بالأمور وضبطها بطريقة حاسمة. وكل المعلومات عن العمليات العسكرية أو الأمنية التي يقوم بها الجيش أو الأمن في سوريا، تشير إلى أنها تنتهي عملياً في إطار النزاع نفسه، لأن الناس منقسمون حول ما تقوم به السلطات. ومن هو معارض للنظام يرى في عناصر الجيش والأمن أعداءً له يجب التخلص منهم، وهو يطلق عليه صفات تمتّ إلى انتماء مناطقي أو طائفي أكثر من اعتبارهم خصوماً أو جيش الخصوم.
ولأن لا أحد يقدر على وضع تصوّر عملاني للتخلص من هذه الحالة، فإن النقاش بشأن ما يجب القيام به يعيد الأمور إلى نقطة الصفر، حيث لا يزال كثيرون يصرّون على اتهام النظام، ليس بالمسؤولية عن وصول الأمور الى هذا الحد، بل بالحديث عن أن مجموعات القتل هذه إنما تنتمي إلى النظام وأجهزته. وحجة أصحاب هذه الوجهة أن النظام يسعى إلى خلق فتنة طائفية تمدّ في عمره. لكن أصحاب هذا المنطق لا يملكون الحجج الكافية لإقناع الناس من حولهم بهذه الحكاية، وخصوصاً أن مجموعات كثيرة انسحبت من تحرك احتجاجي لامس حدّ الحرب الأهلية والمذهبية. وهي حرب لا تبقي بلداً حتى يُعمل على إصلاحه.
وبمعزل عن قدرة الإعلام العام المسيطر على معظمه من قبل خصوم النظام في سوريا، أو النشاط الدعائي لأجهزة استخبارات تابعة لحكومات تعارض بقاء النظام السوري، إلا أن المشهد الدموي على الأرض، والأنباء المتداولة بين الناس الموجودين هناك أو بالقرب من المسرح الدموي، إنما يؤديان عملياً إلى رفع مستوى التوتر بين السكان، ويدفعان إلى الاعتقاد بقوة أن الحراك الشعبي السوري الذي انطلق قبل بضعة شهور، إنما دخل في نفق الجنون، ما يعني أنه لم يعد بالإمكان الحديث عن سلميّته، ولا عن شرعيته، ولا عن استقلاليته، علماً بأن هذا الكلام لا يعني مطلقاً منح الشرعية، لا السياسية ولا الأخلاقية، لارتكابات قوى النظام ومسلّحيه ضد الخصوم.
http://www.al-akhbar.com/node/25163
November 4th, 2011, 4:33 pm
jad said:
CNNArabic
وزارة الخارجية الأمريكية تنصح السوريين بعدم تسليم أنفسهم للسلطات الأمنية في أعقاب مهلة منحتها الحكومة لحملة السلاح لتسليم أنفسهم.
November 4th, 2011, 4:37 pm
Mango said:
‘Arab Spring scapegoat for debts US can’t pay off”
November 4th, 2011, 4:42 pm
louai said:
Jad , i cant belive it ? they dont even pretend not to support this terrorists any more
واشنطن تنصح السوريين بعدم تسليم أنفسهم لنظام الأسد
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/9799/0,,15511819,00.html
November 4th, 2011, 4:57 pm
Tara said:
Syria troops kill protesters in new blow to peace deal
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Syria+troops+kill+protesters+blow+peace+deal/5657220/story.html
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE NOVEMBER 4, 2011
DAMASCUS – Syrian troops killed five civilians in protest centres on Friday as demonstrators took to the streets nationwide to test the regime’s readiness to honour its commitments under an Arab peace deal.
Washington had already warned that the signs were not encouraging after troops killed 20 civilians on Thursday – the first day the hard-won agreement aimed at ending nearly eight month of bloodshed came into effect.
It said it expected the Arab League to take action if Damascus failed to deliver on its promises to halt all violence against civilians and withdraw its troops from cities, such as Homs, which have been at the centre of unprecedented protests against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Troops opened fire from tanks in several residential neighbourhoods of Homs, a city of some one million people that has been one of the main focuses of the protests raging since mid-March, a human rights group said.
“Two people were killed, one of them a woman, when the Baba Amro neighbourhood was raked with heavy machinegun fire,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a statement received by AFP in Nicosia.
Troops also opened fire in the city’s Ghuta neighbourhood, killing two civilians and wounding four, as they tried to disperse a demonstration, the Britain-based watchdog added.
In the town of Kanaker, outside the capital, troops opened fire as protesters gathered after the main weekly Muslim prayers, killing one demonstrator and wounding five, the Observatory said.
Troops also opened fire on demonstrators in the city of Deir Ezzor in Syria’s oil-rich tribal east, the watchdog said.
In the Mediterranean coastal city of Banias, security forces surrounded a major mosque in the city centre and beat up worshippers as they attempted to demonstrate after the prayers.
“The security forces arrested dozens of people in the town, including four children closely related to Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman,” the watchdog said.
“The children were detained from their homes and were not present at the demonstrations,” it said.
Video footage posted on YouTube showed dozens of demonstrators, some of them masked, marching through the historic Midan neighbourhood of the capital ahead of the noon prayers, chanting anti-Assad slogans.
Another demonstration was held in Harasta just outside Damascus, demanding that the pan-Arab bloc accept that Assad had no intention of keeping his word.
“How long is the Arab League going to listen to this liar,” said a placard held up by one of the protesters.
“He said he accepted the Arab plan but the result has been the deaths of 500 martyrs, the arrests of more 2,000 people and the tanks are still rolling through the streets.”
Two more people were killed, one of them an army deserter, when troops opened fire on a group of people trying to slip across the border into Jordan, the Observatory said.
The Local Coordination Committees, which organise protests on the ground, had called on Syrians to take to the streets across the country on Friday, to show the world whether the Assad regime was really prepared to end a crackdown that the UN says has left more than 3,000 people dead since mid-March.
Syrians should stage “peaceful protests” to “validate whether armed forces … have been withdrawn from the cities and towns, and whether violence has been stopped, detainees have been released, Arab and international media correspondents have been allowed in the country and if a dialogue has been made possible,” the protest organisers said.
There has been enormous scepticism among opponents about the regime’s readiness to call off its troops and enter meaningful negotiations as it promised under the peace deal unveiled at an Arab foreign ministers’ meeting on Wednesday.
“We told the secretary general of our fears that the regime will not keep its promises,” Samir al-Nashar, a member of the opposition Syrian National Council, said after being briefed by Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi on Thursday.
The doubt were echoed by Washington after Thursday’s bloodshed.
“We have not seen any evidence that the Assad regime intends to live up to the commitments that it’s made,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.
“We will predict that, if he (Assad) doesn’t meet his promises to the Arab League, the Arab League is going to feel that they had promises made, promises broken, and they’re going to have to react,” Nuland added.
November 4th, 2011, 5:03 pm
jad said:
Louai,
The west is not looking to solve any issue in Syria, they are doing just the opposite, their goal is chaos nothing else, mahatma ford tried hard for that and when it didn’t work he left so now they are planning for a full scale civil war, there is no other explanation of this stupid announcement, as if you are telling those who are using arms to keep killing. The usual Western hypocritical strategy.
I guess the West paid lots of money for arms and people and when the Syrian government is giving a practical solution to those who trapped, the American are telling them NO.
November 4th, 2011, 5:18 pm
Amir in Tel Aviv said:
ANAL,
“…i wouldn’t want to be in tel aviv if i were you”.
====
Why is that? Is there some thing you would like to share? Iran’s war plans, maybe?
I do not fear for my life, but I have 2 cats that I will want to evacuate before hostilities start.
.
November 4th, 2011, 5:19 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
#279 LOUAI: That’s very disgusting. If that titbit of news circulates in Syria it can strengthen the spirit of national unity in Syria.
November 4th, 2011, 5:25 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
This is about the most important video I have seen so far, she is telling the honest truth, admitting to not knowing the whole story, and in fact she does not know it all, maybe about 30%, but this women gives you an incredible details you never and will never ever hear again. Be patient with the announcer, the video is long and gets sluggish sometime, what I done, is used real player to download it to USB card and watched to smoothly, do the same, doubtful that it will be around, or online for long:
Just be patient, it gets very interesting as you go. You will not get this kind of info from MSM:
http://beforeitsnews.com/story/1318/743/CIA_Whistle-blower_Exposes_Everything_9_11.html
November 4th, 2011, 5:30 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
@ JAD #281. You remember who “Why-Discuss” was. At the time Robert Ford made his famous visit to the street protesters in Hama a few months ago, “Why-Discuss” had the following line of reasoning: (1) USA foreign policy is longstandingly anti-Syrian. (2) Therefore if dissidents accept moral support from and associate with the USA it is detrimental to the dissidents’ respectability among Syrians at large. (3) The statements in (1) and (2) are well known and pretty well accepted in Syria, and the USA people know them too, and may accept them too. (4) Therefore Robert Ford may have known that his visit to Hama would be detrimental to the reputation of the dissidents in Syria — which we think it was. In support of that line of reasoning, in the video of him driving through the protest area in Hama, Robert Ford, inside his locked car, looks aghast and about to vomit. He looks like a guy with a phobia against snakes who’s been forced to put on a heavy-duty space-suit (the car) and traverse a corridor full of snakes (the protesters). I believe he never cracked open a window in Hama, much less got out of the car.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMARzIDWZzg&feature=player_detailpage#t=50s
Similarly, the USA people today may be able to acknowledge privately that the main effect of their disgusting stuff at #279 very well may be to strengthen the Assad regime, and yet they’ll still go ahead and do this stuff for domestic US politics reasons.
November 4th, 2011, 5:33 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
Not sure what your user name means in Arabic but just gave you the eights thumb up and downloaded the video. The flying sword, that is not Christian at all, not even Syrian, but the people faces are nice and video is cool.
November 4th, 2011, 5:40 pm
Tara said:
“Oppressed, defenceless people are dying in serious numbers,” said Recep Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister several weeks ago.
I think I underestimated Turkey in the past. I believe Erdogan is indeed holding Bashar’s fate in his hands. Turkey washed its hand of Bashar and will be working on removing him covertly and overtly. It appears that the FSA with the help of Turkey is what will bring Bashar down. Syria is viewed by Erdogan as Turkey’s internal problem and he will not allow the NATO to take care of it. He will.
November 4th, 2011, 5:42 pm
Hans said:
Killing an more killing, lies and more lies, the news is lying all over the world over Syria, i think the only way people can believe anything is not from the news, i talk to people all over the world and it is clear that the situation in Syria is very calm except in some area in Homs infested with MB mobs, the game is clear and the conspiracy is becoming clear like a day in July sky. MB mobs for decades carry blood on their hands.
The MB is trying to control the oppositions even some of the opposition refusing to be counted as MB.
But the USA is paying money to the MB, but killed every AlQaida they know I can’t wait to see the USA hunting these rats again in Syria as it did in Iraq, Afganistan, Somali, Yemen, etc ( it is ironic uhh) Gallioun and others are receiving money from both USA and France. The internal opposition rightfully feel that the hard work and the blood of people who died are going in vain. many people inside are not interested in Gallioun to be the next president of Syria, he lived in France and the USA more than he lived in Syria.. the other are basically MB mobs… and some of the insider wants to be more secular, democratic regime not MB regime.
The internal opposition is not interested in USA style meddling in Syria internal affairs, I am not talking about the military one but the political one, you have Turkey and Qatar the pimps of the equation trying everything they can to harbor a MB transition to power.
it is the preparation of transition from one dictator to another.
i want to see what kind of democracy Syria will ever have, i think the next time will see a transition of power in Syria it is going to be a military coup D’Etate as usual this kind of population can’t be ruled but the boot.
the west and everyone knows that but they feel Bashar time is over therefore no point of dwelling on his existence therefore told him to leave and he doesn’t understand it is time to leave and no point playing with big boys who their goal is only to destroy Syria for the benefit of Israel.
PS you can all name the MB figures here on this blog who belongs to the MB mobs clear as it can get.
November 4th, 2011, 5:46 pm
Mina said:
Jad, Mara,
The French have also pushed up the rhetoric against Syria today. As usual they give the death toll with no mention of who killed who.
I believe there is a competition now for cash. Neither the US or the EU want any Arab to invest a penny in an Arab country. All the cash in needed in the West to absorb the debts. It’s a psychological war only now, because if an other missile is fired, millions will take to the streets and claim that this is their money and that there is always money for bombs but not for health and education.
They also want to keep the pressure and have more bloodshed to be sure they bring all the guys around to this very area and let the dirty job be done by Assad.
November 4th, 2011, 5:46 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: LITTLE LADDIE JADDIE
RE: “…The west is not looking to solve any issue in Syria, just the opposite, their goal is chaos…Ford tried hard for that and when it didn’t work he left…now they are planning for full scale civil war, there’s no other explanation…”
You’re half right, Jaddie. The West isn’t looking to “solve” anything in your train wreck of a country. Fact is, the West doesn’t care. Beyond asking your idiot leader to stop the killing, that is.
And Ford’s task wasn’t spreading chaos. He didn’t need to. You Syrians are esperts when it comes to chaos. Chaos is the sole legacy of the Assad Mafia.
Quite the contrary, Ford’s task was to make it plain to Besho and Asma that the whole world’s watching. When it became clear to Obama that Besho didn’t care, he said “fuck him” and pulled Ford out. You know the saying: you can lead an ass to water but you can’t make him drink.
No one’s going to invade Syria. Let Bashar the Czar plant his useless ass on his useless throne. He won’t sit there long. His own people will kill him. Depend on it.
http://viarecta.blogspot.com/2011/10/king-of-all-african-kings-is-hunted.html
November 4th, 2011, 5:51 pm
bronco said:
#254 Jad
Be sure that if there was any suspicion Adnan Kaddour was killed by the ‘regime’ the news or the rumor would have been everywhere in the media accusing the goverment.
The fact he disappeared or was killed by foreign hands and the media are silent seems the confirm the regime’s thesis that the ‘defection video’ was made under threats and once it was done the poor guy was executed by the ‘opposition’.
I am surprised his family is silent about it.
I hope truth comes out of that mysterious story that made the headline and is now forgotten by the media.
Majedaldoon repeatedly said he had information that were ‘secret’
I wonder what he has to say now.
November 4th, 2011, 5:59 pm
bronco said:
Tara #280
Watch out! You have a competition in prediction: Calamity Vicky
“We will predict that, if he (Assad) doesn’t meet his promises to the Arab League, the Arab League is going to feel that they had promises made, promises broken, and they’re going to have to react,” Nuland added.
November 4th, 2011, 6:10 pm
zoo said:
Syrian Interior Ministry promises amnesty to protesters
http://rt.com/news/line/2011-11-04/#id21559
The Syrian Interior Ministry has urged protesters to lay down their arms until November 12, promising amnesty to all those who surrender. The ministry carried out similar campaigns in May and June. According to Syrian officials, about 10,000 protesters gave written promises not to harm the country’s security in any way and were granted amnesty in exchange. New initiative comes after the Arab League proposed a new plan ordering to withdraw military forces from cities. Syrian authorities only agree to withdraw troops if protesters lay down arms and end all military activity. Meanwhile activists report that at least nine people have been killed by Syrian security forces on Friday.
November 4th, 2011, 6:16 pm
Tara said:
Bronco
No competition with Nuland. Only with you.
November 4th, 2011, 6:37 pm
Ya Mara Ghalba said:
I do not understand how the USA people think about Syria, and I don’t want to spend any of my time trying to find out. They sound psychotic to me. That’s all I can say about the USA people. But one thing I can say about Syrians is that when the USA people advise Syrian criminals to not turn themselves in to Syrian authoritites, and when Ambassador Ford gets himself chauffeured though the anti-reigme protesters in Hama, those gestures by the USA can strengthen the spirit of national unity among the great bulk of Syrians.
November 4th, 2011, 6:58 pm
Ghufran said:
Jna#265
are u talking about the US congress?
I lived in the US for 20 years and followed politics for another quarter century and I do not remember the US being as weak and confused as it is today.
Strategically,the EU is declining and the US has serious problems,people in the middle east are starting to understand this fact. The intervention in Libya and the current dance about Iran and Syria may be the grand finale,after this is done,a new reality will emerge where Arabs have to take control of their own house but not until the princes of goats get their fair share of lashing.
November 4th, 2011, 7:12 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: GHUFRAN
RE: “…the EU is declining and the US has serious problems. People in the middle east are starting to understand this fact. The intervention in Libya and the current dance about Iran and Syria may be the grand finale…”
Right, Ghuffie, everything might soon be turning your way. But don’t bet money on it just yet. At least not money with Besho’s picture on it…
November 4th, 2011, 7:32 pm
Tara said:
In Syria, growing evidence of insurgency
By Liz Sly, Friday, November 4, 4:51 PM
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/in-syria-growing-evidence-of-insurgency/2011/11/04/gIQAQ7lAnM_story.html
HAMA, SYRIA — Along a broad, tree-lined avenue in a seemingly quiet residential neighborhood of this restive city, a fresh, foot-long scar in the asphalt bears testimony to something that has become apparent in recent weeks: The eight-month-old Syrian uprising is gradually turning into an armed insurgency.
The hole was gouged by a small bomb hidden in a garbage bin that exploded as a police car passed. Moments later, gunmen hiding in a nearby park opened fire on the police before fleeing into the bushes, according to Syrian officials and residents of the neighborhood.
It was by no means a major attack. One policeman was hit in the neck by a bullet, and is expected to recover. Another lost his hearing. Windows shattered nearby were swiftly repaired.
Yet the violence here, though still relatively small scale, seems to signal a transformational moment in what is proving to be the most intractable and complex of the Arab revolts.
Officials and residents interviewed on a recent, government-supervised visit say similar attacks are now happening on a nightly basis in Hama. The explosions echo through the streets of a city whose name had become synonymous with the power of peaceful protests until tanks moved in to crush the uprising in August.
“Every day there is something. Even sometimes twice a day,” said Osama Janoudi, 29, who witnessed the recent bomb-and-gun attack against the police from his office across the street. “Armed men are attacking the police and I don’t know who they are.”
Hama’s governor, Anas Naem, said an average of three members of the security forces die in attacks every week. “We are having about one attack a night by bombs, ambushes and RPGs, and within minutes the city turns into a ghost town,” he said.
The government-supervised visit to Hama came before the announcement this week of an Arab League peace plan under which Syria agreed to withdraw its troops from residential areas, release detainees and permit peaceful protests.
But the deaths of at least 20 people Friday, most of them shot during anti-government demonstrations, signaled that Syria does not intend to halt its crackdown against opponents — whom it has always maintained are armed.
That even a small number of them now appear to be so is likely to further complicate the quest for a settlement. The Free Syrian Army, a group of defected army soldiers that has claimed responsibility for many recent attacks, called off a ceasefire on Friday night, and pledged to intensify its operations in response to the latest shootings.
“The regime is a liar and is trying to buy time with the Arab League and the international community,” said the Free Syrian Army’s leader, Col. Riad al-Asaad, speaking by telephone from Turkey. “Now we will escalate our operations until this regime is toppled.”
On Friday, the government offered an amnesty to citizens who handed over weapons, but in Washington, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said she “wouldn’t advise anybody to turn themselves in to regime authorities at the moment.”
more…..next page
November 4th, 2011, 7:32 pm
louai said:
Daer Jad
I have no doubts that the west search for no solution in Syria but what made me feel sick is the Americans have the nerves to tell the armed men not to accept the amnesty offer from the president , don’t they know that this will expose them entirely? are they that naive to make such comment? as YA MARA GHALBA SAID this will only strengthen the national unity and expose the American plans and hopes in Syria
SYRIA DO NOT DESURVE WHAT HAPPENING TO IT , WHEN THIS ALL OVER WE NEED TO WORK TO TREAT THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM , AS THE PRESEDENT SAID THE PROBLEM IS IN OUR IMMUN SYSTEM ,WE SHOULD LOOK NO FURTHER , THE WEST CAN BARK AS MUCH AS THEY WANT IF WE HAD THE IMMUNITY WE WONT EVEN HEAR THEIR BARKING
November 4th, 2011, 7:37 pm
Ghufran said:
مقال يستحق القراءه
http://www.alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today%5C04qpt697.htm&arc=data%5C2011%5C11%5C11-04%5C04qpt697.htm
الأردن هو الهدف المقبل بعد اضعاف مصر و سوريا و تمزيق ليبيا و تقسيم السودان
قطر بصدد إزاحة جامعة الدول العربيه الضعيفة اصلا و إبدالها بمجلس تعاون خليجي ينفذ سياسات الغرب في الشرق الاوسط مقابل استمرار امراء الماعز في الحكم و تقليم اظافر ايران
سوريا مهمه سياسيا و ليس اقتصاديا و مصر غارقه حتى أذنيها بمشاكلها الداخليه
واضح ان تركيا و الغرب لا يريدون حلا وسطا في سوريا
November 4th, 2011, 7:47 pm
Tara said:
Bronco
Do you believe this:
Syria pledges to withdraw troops from the streets by Sunday under terms of Arab League peace deal
Syria has pledged to withdraw forces from its streets by Sunday under an Arab League-brokered “peace deal”, despite opposition activists proclaiming that the regime’s continued violence meant the accord was “already dead.”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/8871110/Syria-pledges-to-withdraw-troops-from-the-streets-by-Sunday-under-terms-of-Arab-League-peace-deal.html
By Andrew Gilligan, Damascus10:43PM GMT 04 Nov
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Abdulfattah Ammura, the deputy foreign minister, insisted: “Syria means what it says and we will implement the Arab League agreement, every aspect of it. If we agree to something, we do it.”
Pressed on when Syria would fulfil the deal, he said: “We are working on it. We will see it very shortly, hopefully before Eid [Sunday].”
November 4th, 2011, 7:49 pm
Ghufran said:
ليس للفلسطينيين اصدقاء الا انفسهم
باريس ـ لندن ـ رام الله ـ وكالات: قال دبلوماسيون في الأمم المتحدة مساء الخميس ان فرنسا وبريطانيا ستمتنعان عن التصويت في مجلس الأمن الدولي على اقتراح انضمام فلسطين كعضو كامل إلى الأمم المتحدة، فيما أشارت تقارير إلى أن كلّ من كولومبيا والبوسنة ستمتنعان أيضاً، ما قد يحول دون استخدام الولايات المتحدة حق النقض (الفيتو) لأن الفلسطينيين لن يحصلوا على ما يكفي من الأصوات.
وقالت وزارة الخارجية الفرنسية الجمعة في مؤتمر صحافي إلكتروني إنه بينما ترى فرنسا أن السعي الفلسطيني لإقامة دولة أمر مشروع إلا أنه لا توجد فرصة لقبول طلب الحصول على العضوية الكاملة خاصة بسبب المعارضة الأمريكية.
ونقلت عدة وسائل إعلام امريكية وغربية عن دبلوماسيين من داخل الأمم المتحدة قولهم إن فرنسا أبلغت أعضاء مجلس الأمن خلال اجتماع لجنة قبول عضوية دول جديدة إنها ستمتنع عن التصويت.
ونقلت شبكة ‘سي أن أن’ عن مسؤول آخر قوله إن بريطانيا ستمتنع أيضاً عن التصويت.
ومن المقرر أن ينعقد مجلس الأمن في 11 تشرين الثاني (نوفمبر) لبحث انضمام فلسطين كدولة كاملة العضوية بالأمم المتحدة.
وأشارت تقارير أخرى إلى أن كولومبيا والبوسنة قد تمتنعان أيضاً عن التصويت، ما يهدد بعدم حصول الفلسطينيين على 9 أصوات ضرورية من أصل 15 للحصول على تأييد المجلس، ما سيوفر على الولايات المتحدة إحراج استخدام حق النقض (الفيتو).
Qatar and Bahrain deserve an independent state and they both can fit in the suburb of Damascus while 6 million pals are not good enough for a seat at the UN?
هذا النفاق مثير للغثيان
November 4th, 2011, 7:57 pm
Ghufran said:
القرصنه الإسرائيليه في عرض البحر
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/video/2011/nov/04/israel-navy-intercepts-gaza-flotilla-video
November 4th, 2011, 8:05 pm
jna said:
Ghufran
The domestic politics of the US often interferes with an effective foreign policy, especially re: the Middle East. The lobby for Israel (both Jewish and Christian)has very strong clout using votes, campaign money, and media influence to put almost all politicians in thrall to the perceived interests of Israel. It’s most obvious in Congress, but the President could have stopped the anti-Palestinian legislation I linked to above. Here is an example in today’s news. Mitt Romney will likely be the Republican party candidate to run for President against Barack Obama next year…..
http://thinkprogress.org/security/2011/10/28/356276/romney-israel-policy/
“The free daily newspaper Israel Hayom — a media outlet closely associated with right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — asked Romney if, as president, he would ever consider moving the American Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. In his answer, Romney made some astonishing claims. First, that his policy toward Israel will be guided by Israeli leaders; second, on the Jerusalem issue, he’d do whatever Israel tells him to do; and third, he does not think the United States should take a leadership role in resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict:”
“ROMNEY: The actions that I will take will be actions recommended and supported by Israeli leaders. I don’t seek to take actions independent of what our allies think is best, and if Israel’s leaders thought that a move of that nature would be helpful to their efforts, then that’s something I’ll be inclined to do. But again, that’s a decision which I would look to the Israeli leadership to help guide. I don’t think America should play the role of the leader of the peace process, instead we should stand by our ally. Again, my inclination is to follow the guidance of our ally Israel, as to where our facilities and embassies would exist.”
I agree that the US has entered a weak and confused (and dangerous) state. Shock and overreaction from the 9-11 attack led to bad decisions, especially Iraq. The economy is the worst I remember in my lifetime. China is steadily challenging our leadership position.
November 4th, 2011, 8:12 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
The interior minister asked people to surrender their arms, I think he better surrender himself to the people,if he wants to survive,
Bronco
are you worried about Adnan Bakkour? let us see what kind of lies the regime supporters will say,they say he died in Turkey,they say the opposition killed him,I think we will hear more rumors. let us wait and see.
The regime is killing more and more peaceful demonstrators,over 20 died today,the regime is exposing his lies.
Homs: you will be saved soon.
November 4th, 2011, 8:19 pm
SYR.EXPAT said:
رئيس تحرير (تشرين) السابقة سميرة مسالمة: المواطن السوري لايعتبر وطنيا إلا إذا حفظ روايات المؤسسات الأمنية
المجموعة: أخبارنشر بتاريخ الجمعة, 04 تشرين2/نوفمبر 2011 18:32كتب بواسطة: زمان الوصل – وطن
في أول تصريح لها حول رواية السلطة، قالت سميرة المسالمة رئيس تحرير جريدة تشرين السابقة، إن الصمت عن الخطأ لايبني وطنا، مشيرة إلى أن المواطن السوري لايعتبر وطنيا إلا إذا حفظ روايات المؤسسات الأمنية أو التزم الصمت.
ونوهت المسالمة في صفحتها على الفيس بوك إلى أن المثقفين والصحفيين، كانوا يعملون على تجميل الواقع في سوريا، إلا أنهم لم يستطيعوا أن يغيروا الواقع، كما أنهم لم يستطيعوا أن يحترفوا “حرفة التزوير”، مؤكدة أن الإعلاميين والمثقفين كانوا أسرى التغييب والإقصاء وتدمير المؤسسات الممنهج. محملة ممن وصفتهم “بالآخرين” مسؤولية “عثرات” الصحفيين والمثقفين.
نص ماكتبته المسالمة على صفحتها على الفيس بوك:
“اذا أردت أن تبقى ” المواطن السوري الوطني ” فعليك أن تحفظ رواية المؤسسات الأمنية أو تصمت ، وكأن الصمت عن الخطأ يبني وطنا .
سنوات وسنوات ونحن نجمل الواقع عله يصبح جميلا، فلا هو تغير، ولا نحن أتقنا حرفة التزوير.
نحمل الآخرين مسؤولية عثراتنا وننسى أن السوري “الاعلامي والمثقف” كان أسير التغييب والاقصاء وتدمير المؤسسات الممنهج حتى غاب “الاعلامي والمثقف ” حضر الموظف والمرتهن”.
November 4th, 2011, 8:20 pm
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: LOUAI
RE: “…SYRIA DOES NOT DESERVE WHAT IS HAPPENING TO IT…”
Yes it does. Lou. You all let a criminal mafia run the show for 40 years. And now, when the new Mafia Don screws up big time and his world starts falling apart around him, you all wring your hands and cry, “We don’t deserve this! What did we do to deserve this?”
It’s what you didn’t do, Lou. You didn’t kill Hafez al-Assad when you all had the chance. And now you’re reaping the whirlwind.
And blaming everyone but yourselves. Your problem isn’t in Washington, or Paris, or even Tel Aviv. It’s in fucking Damascus!
November 4th, 2011, 8:25 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Shaher in Wadi Khalid in Lebanon was killed by the syrian rgime and they stole his sheep.
November 4th, 2011, 8:27 pm
bronco said:
Tara
Calamity Vicky is becoming bolder to make sure her predictions are realized. She deserves well her nickname.
“Victoria Nuland said she “wouldn’t advise anybody to turn themselves in to regime authorities at the moment.”
Go Vicky Go!
November 4th, 2011, 9:04 pm
Akbar Palace said:
Well, I haven’t posted here in a while, and strangely, a search of this thread shows lots of references to Israel and Zionism. I thought it was a website for Syria.
Anyway, since Israel seems to still be a major issue here, here’s a informative trip you may want to attend.
My focus is Israel’s own population of Muslims, known as Israeli Arabs.
http://dp.heritagestudyprograms.com/
November 4th, 2011, 9:19 pm
bronco said:
MajedAlkhadoon
If Bakkour was alive and had really willingly defected, I wonder what he is waiting for to join the SNC.
Get ready for a surprise like the hoax of the Gay Girl in Damascus and Zeinab the decapitated woman.
November 4th, 2011, 9:23 pm
zoo said:
Syria and Iran: the great game
BY Alastair Crooke – The Guardian
Regime change in Syria is a strategic prize that outstrips Libya – which is why Saudi Arabia and the west are playing their part
This summer a senior Saudi official told John Hannah, Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, that from the outset of the upheaval in Syria, the king has believed that regime change would be highly beneficial to Saudi interests: “The king knows that other than the collapse of the Islamic Republic itself, nothing would weaken Iran more than losing Syria.”
This is today’s “great game” – losing Syria. And this is how it is played: set up a hurried transitional council as sole representative of the Syrian people, irrespective of whether it has any real legs inside Syria; feed in armed insurgents from neighbouring states; impose sanctions that will hurt the middle classes; mount a media campaign to denigrate any Syrian efforts at reform; try to instigate divisions within the army and the elite; and ultimately President Assad will fall – so its initiators insist.
Europeans, Americans and certain Gulf states may see the Syria “game” as the logical successor to the supposedly successful Libya game in moulding the Arab awakening towards a western cultural paradigm. In terms of regional politics however, Syria is strategically more valuable, and Iran knows this. Iran has said that it will respond to any external intervention in Syria.
It is already no “game”, as the many killed by both sides attests to. The radical armed elements being used in Syria as auxiliaries to depose Assad run counter to the prospect of any outcome emerging within the western paradigm. These groups may well have a bloody and very undemocratic agenda of their own. I warned of this danger in connection to Afghanistan in the 80s: some of the Afghan mujahideen had real roots in the community, I suggested, but others posed a severe danger to people. A kindly American politician at the time placed his arm around my shoulder and told me not to worry: these were the people “kicking Soviet ass”. We chose to look the other way because kicking the Soviets played well to US domestic needs. Today Europe looks the other way, refusing to consider who Syria’s combat-experienced insurgents taking such a toll of Syrian security forces truly are, because losing Assad and confronting Iran plays so well, particularly at a time of domestic difficulty.
Fortunately, the tactics in Syria, in spite of heavy investment, seem to be failing. Most people in the region believe that if Syria is pushed further into civil conflict the result will be sectarian violence in Lebanon, Iraq and more widely too. The notion that such conflict will throw up a stable, let alone western-style, democracy, is fanciful at best, an act of supreme callousness at worst.
The origins of the “lose Assad” operation preceded the Arab awakening: they reach back to Israel’s failure in its 2006 war to seriously damage Hezbollah, and the post-conflict US assessment that it was Syria that represented Hezbollah’s achilles heel – as the vulnerable conduit linking Hezbollah to Iran. US officials speculated as to what might be done to block this vital corridor, but it was Prince Bandar of Saudi Arabia who surprised them by saying that the solution was to harness Islamic forces. The Americans were intrigued, but could not deal with such people. Leave that to me, Bandar retorted. Hannah noted that “Bandar working without reference to US interests is clearly cause for concern. But Bandar working as a partner … against a common Iranian enemy is a major strategic asset.” Bandar got the job.
Hypothetical planning, however, only became concrete action this year, with the overthrow of Egypt’s President Mubarak. Suddenly Israel seemed vulnerable, and a weakened Syria, mired in troubles, had heightened strategic allure. In parallel, Qatar had stepped to the fore. Azmi Bishara, a pan-Arabist who resigned from the Israeli Knesset and self-exiled to Doha, was according to some local reports involved in a scheme in which al-Jazeera would not just report revolution, but instantiate it for the region – or at least this is what was believed in Doha in the wake of the Tunisian and Egyptian uprisings. Qatar, however, was not merely trying to leverage human suffering into an international intervention, but was also – as in Libya – directly involved as a key operational patron of the opposition.
The next stages were to draw France’s President Sarkozy – the arch-promoter of the Benghazi transitional council model that had turned Nato into an instrument of regime change – into the team. Barack Obama followed by helping to persuade Turkey’s prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan – already piqued at Assad – to play the transitional council part on Syria’s border, and lend his legitimacy to the “resistance”. Both of the latter components, however, are not without challenges from their own security arms, who are sceptical of the efficacy of the transitional council model, and opposed to military intervention. Even Bandar is not without challenges: he has no political umbrella from the king, and others in the family are playing other Islamist cards to different ends. Iran, Iraq and Algeria – and occasionally Egypt – co-operate to frustrate Gulf manoeuvres against Syria at the Arab League. The transitional council model, which in Libya has displayed the weakness of leveraging just one faction as the government-in-waiting, is more starkly defective in Syria. Syria’s opposition council, put together by Turkey, France and Qatar, is caught out by the fact that the Syrian security structures have remained near rock solid through seven months – defections have been negligible – and Assad’s popular support base are intact. Only external intervention could change that equation, but for the opposition to call for it would be political suicide, and they know it.
The internal opposition gathering in Istanbul demanded a statement refusing external intervention and armed action, but the Syrian national council was announced even before the intra-opposition talks had reached any agreement – such was the hurry on the part of external parties.
The external opposition continues to fudge its stance on external intervention, and with good reason: the internal opposition rejects it. This is the flaw to the model – for the majority in Syria deeply oppose external intervention, fearing civil conflict. Hence Syrians face a long period of externally mounted insurgency, siege and international attrition. Both sides will pay in blood.
But the real danger, as Hannah himself noted, is that the Saudis might “once again fire up the old Sunni jihadist network and point it in the general direction of Shiite Iran”, which puts Syria first in line. In fact, that is exactly what is happening, but the west, as before in Afghanistan, prefers not to notice – so long as the drama plays well to western audiences.
As Foreign Affairs reported last month, Saudi and its Gulf allies are firing up the radical Salafists (fundamentalist Sunnis), not only to weaken Iran, but to do what they see is necessary to survive – to disrupt and emasculate the awakenings that threaten absolute monarchism. This is happening in Syria, Libya, Egypt Lebanon, Yemen and Iraq.
This Islamically assertive, literalist orientation of Islam may be generally viewed as nonpolitical and pliable, but history is far from comforting. If you tell people often enough that they can be king-makers and throw buckets of money at them, do not be surprised if they metamorphose – yet again – into something very political. It may take some months, but the fruits of this new attempt to use radical forces for western ends will yet again backfire. Michael Scheuer, the former head of the CIA’s Bin Laden unit, recently warned that the Hillary Clinton-devised response to the Arab awakening, of implanting western paradigms, by force if necessary, into the void of fallen regimes, will be seen as a “cultural war on Islam”, and will sow the seeds of a further round of radicalisation.
One of the sad paradoxes is the undercutting of moderate Sunnis, who now find themselves caught between the rock of being seen as a western tool, and the hard place of radical Sunni Salafists waiting for the opportunity to displace them and to dismantle the state. What a strange world: Europe and the US think it is OK to “use” precisely those Islamists (including al-Qaida) who absolutely do not believe in western-style democracy in order to bring it about. But then, why not just look the other way and gain the benefit of the public enjoying Assad’s kicking?
November 4th, 2011, 9:30 pm
Revlon said:
Good day!!!
November 4th, 2011, 9:38 pm
Revlon said:
The Acton Spring? How unrest in Syria spilled over into the respectable streets of west London
Home of President Bashar al-Assad’s father-in-law attacked by protesters under cover of darkness
Rob Hastings
Friday 04 November 2011
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/the-acton-spring-how-unrest-in-syria-spilled-over-into-the-respectable-streets-of-west-london-6256953.html
His surname roughly translates as “The Mute” in English, and it’s fitting. Dr Fawaz al-Akhras, the father-in-law of the Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, who lives in British suburbia, has remained conspicuously silent over the killings and torture in his homeland since the unrest began in March.
But now Dr Akhras is facing increasing pressure from both sides of the deadly revolt to reveal where he stands.
The Independent has learnt that his terraced house in Acton, west London, has recently been attacked by night-time protesters. His small garden wall is still lying on the lawn after being kicked over in anger at the regime his daughter Asma married into 11 years ago. (She is known locally as “Emma”, her nickname as a child.) Sources also said paint was daubed on Dr Akhras’s front door and his windows smashed.
At the door, his wife Sahar Otri, a retired diplomat, refused to comment; on sight of a reporter, Dr Akhras drove off into the night, clutching his mobile to his ear.
During an uprising largely shrouded from investigation by a ban on foreign reporting in Syria – where the UN says more than 3,000 people have died – the fact that Britain is home to a man who can pick up the phone and speak directly to his family within the Damascus Presidential Palace makes Dr Akhras an intriguing character.
Though most of those close to him insist Dr Akhras is far removed from Bashar’s central circle of power and influence, a classified 2008 cable from the then-US chargé d’affaires to Damascus, released by Wikileaks this year, names him as one of the President’s four key “money-men” around the world, recommending him as a figure Washington should “go after” to pressure the regime. “Contacts in the banking sector have commented on the large amount of funds that have begun to move recently through his accounts,” wrote Michael H Corbin. “A long-time resident of London, he is suspected of being another avenue used by Asad [sic] to stash funds abroad.”
November 4th, 2011, 9:39 pm
Revlon said:
237. REVLONSAID:
*YOUR COMMENT IS AWAITING MODERATION.*
A view point from the trenches
________________________________
Sheikh Saleh AlHamwi, Member of the General Assembly of the Revolution:
The taste of a revolution is now being experienced
الشيخ صالح الحموي :طعم الثورة يظهر الآن
2011/11/04
الشيخ صالح الحموي عضو الهيئة العامة للثورة
http://www.sooryoon.net/?p=37201
كأنهم لم يسمعوا بثورات من قبل، كأنهم لم يعرفوا أن الثورة رفض لوجود شيء. هل نعرّف لهم معنى الثورة مرة أخرى وهم يدّعون أنهم سياسيون.
الثائر يرفض أن يكون بيدقاً في لعبة الشطرنج السياسية، يحركه السياسي كي يربح معركة ما.
أنتم يا سادة خائفون مع أنكم لستم من يتعرض للقتل، ولستم من يتعرض لسلخ الجلود، ولستم من تبقر بطونكم، ولستم من تغتصب نساؤهم. لا أدري مم أنتم خائفون.
أنتم يا سادة يائسون مع أنكم لستم محاصرين، ولم تسقط امرأة أمامكم حملها من قصف العصابات الأسدية. هل هناك أقوى من قلب الشباب، إنه مضرب المثل في قوة القلوب، ومع ذلك توقف قلب الصبية ذات الستة عشر عاماً من أصوات الدبابات الأسدية. وبناتكم ليست كذلك.
نحن نزعنا الشرعية قولاً واحداً، نقسم لكم أن ما يعرضونه عليكم اليوم عرضوه علينا منذ شهور من قبل محافظ بلدتنا، قالوا لنا: أسقطوا النظام قدر ما شئتم، وقولوا ماشئتم ولكن لا تتعرضوا للرئيس، لا تسبوا الرئيس، لا تشتموا الرئيس، فهو ما يهمنا فقط. إن كنتم لا تصدقون فاسئلوا أهل حماة إن كنتم لا تعلمون. وكنا بعض الحاضرين.
يا أيها السادة السياسيون : الثورة رفض لوجود شيء. هل نعيدها عليكم كل يوم؟ نحن نرفض وجود هذا النظام ونرفض كل ما فيه ومن فيه ومن هو قائم عليه.
We annulled the legitimacy in one emphatic statement.
What is being offered to the opposition now was offered to us months ago.
The mayor of our town offered that we may ask for anything, including the dismantling of the system, but that we should not curse the president; “He is the only thing that matters to us”.
يسألوننا ماذا لو نفّذ النظام مبادرة الجامعة العربية ما أنتم فاعلون؟
هو نفس السؤال لو قيل للمسلمين: لو نطق الشيطان بالشهادتين فما أنتم فاعلون. الشيطان حُكم عليه. والشعب أطلق حكمه وقضى، وليس بعد قضاء الشعب قضاء. حكم الشعب ليس له محكمة نقض تعيد النظر في حكمه. حكم الشعب لا يردّ.
They ask us: What if the regime came through with his promises to the AL?
We say, the People have passed their verdict, and it is irrevocable.
الشعب يريد إعدام الرئيس، وكلمة رئيس هنا بمعنى: من كان يقال له رئيس.
نحن نزعنا الشرعية وها أنتم تريدون إعادتها تحت مظلة الجامعة العربية. فشل النظام بإقناعنا فلجأ إلى الجامعة العربية لتكون واسطة لبقائه. فشل روسيا والصين والأمم المتحدة بأن يثنوا عزيمتنا.
The people have annulled the legitimacy of the regime; No one should attempt to imply its existance by using the legitimacy of the AL.
بدأنا بمطلب الحرية ثم تحولت حركتنا من مطالب إلى ثورة ضد النظام ثم إلى ثورة ضد النظام ورموزه واليوم نرى أنفسنا نضع عنوانا جديدا لثورتنا: الثورة السورية ضد الكرة الأرضية.
أنتم يا سادة تحدثون أنفسكم كما يلي: لو سحب النظام الجيش والأمن من الشوارع سينزل الملايين وبالتالي سيسقط النظام تحت ضغط المظاهرات. لا تظنوا أننا لا نفهم كيف تفكرون.
The compromising opposition’s mantra is this: if the regime withdraw their army and security, the people will demonstrate in the millions and the systyem will fall!
تفكيركم هذا يدلنا بوضوح أنكم لم تتذوقوا معنى الثورة، مجرد أن يخطر في بالكم تلك الأفكار فهذا يعني أنكم متفرجون متعاطفون معنا ولكن لستم منا. لم تذوقوا معنى كلمة ثائر، هذا هو لب الفرق بيننا وبينكم، الثورة لها طعم لا تعرفونه، ذقناه نحن وكان لونه أحمر ورائحته ذكية مختلطة بطعم ملوحة الدموع. ومن ذاق عرف ومن عرف غرف.
Your mantra tells that you have not lived the revolution; You are not of us, but merely sympathising spectators.
You have not lived to see and smell the blood, sweat and tears!
Click to EditRequest Deletion (9 minutes and 41 seconds)
November 4th, 2011, 9:41 pm
Revlon said:
Syrian National Council المجلس الوطني السوري
قام عضوا المجلس الوطني السوري الدكتور هشام مروة و المهندس حسان الهاشمي بزيارة لسعادة وزير الخارجية الكندي الذي أكد دعم بلاده للثورة السورية.
وفي بيان وزير الخارجية اليوم، أكد فيه سعادته الموقف الداعم للثورة السورية والمجلس الوطني ضد آلة القتل والتدمير الذي يمارسه النظام المجرم، وأشار إلى اللقاء الذي جمعه بوفد المجلس ودعمه الكامل للتغيير في سورية نحو الحرية و الديمقراطية
Minister Baird Condemns O…ngoing Violence in Syria
(No. 329 – November 3, 2011 – 4:20 p.m. ET) Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird today released the following statement condemning the ongoing violence in Syria:
“Canada welcomes the efforts of the Arab League to halt the violence in Syria. However, the continued violence in Homs, which claimed the lives of 20 civilians today, demonstrates that President Assad has already reneged on his commitment to end his campaign of terror.
“Canada reiterates its strong condemnation of these violent attacks. The Assad regime has lost all legitimacy. We again call on President Assad and those backing him to relinquish power and step down immediately.
“During my meetings with representatives of the Syrian National Council, they have continuously outlined their appetite for change. Canada will support these calls and support the Syrian people in their quest for a brighter future, one which respects freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of lawSee More
November 4th, 2011, 9:42 pm
Revlon said:
Ugarit News | أوغاريت الإخبارية
أوغاريت || بسمة قضماني عضو المكتب التنفيذي في المجلس الوطني السوري: النظام لا يلبي شروطنا ونرى ذلك منذ الساعة الأولى بعد التوقيع على المبادرة
Ms Basma Qudmani, Executive officer of the SNC: The regime has not met our conditions as per evens of the first hours after singing the agreement.
http://www.facebook.com/UgaritNEWS
04/11/2011
أكدت عضو المكتب التنفيذي في المجلس الوطني السوري بسمة قضماني أن “موضوع المحكمة الجنائية الدولية مطروح، وأول ما يصدر القرار من مجلس الأمن سيسمح للمعارضة السورية أن تحول الملف إلى المحكمة وهذا شأن لا بد منه لمحاكمة مجرمي هذا النظام جميعهم”، لافتة إلى أن “هناك أشخاص نفذت بعض الأوامر وربما لا تكون هي مسئولة عنها، وبالتالي فهذه الإجراءات قضائية لا نستطيع نحن أن نحكم عليها سياسيا”.
The file of the international court of justice is being considered. Once it is adopted by the SC, we shall refer it to the court.
أضافت، في اتصال هاتفي مع إذاعة “الشرق”، “هناك جرائم ترتكب بإسم بعض الفئات ضد الأقليات وهناك تحريض على الموضوع الطائفي، المجلس يجيب على ذلك بوثائق وبالتزامات توقع عليها جميع الطوائف وينظر فيها ويوقع عليها أيضا مشايخ الأقليات والأكثرية، وكل الطوائف متفقة على أن هناك ضرورة لميثاق وطني توافقي حول حماية حقوق كل المكونات المجتمع السوري لأننا مجتمع متنوع لكنه لديه تاريخ في الحياة كمواطنين سوريين مندمجين وليس كأقليات ومجموعات صغيرة” .
وعن حقيقة المجلس الوطني السوري من موقف المبادرة، قالت قضماني “نحن عبرنا عن الشروط المطلوبة قبل أن يتم أي كلام عن تفاوض مع هذا النظام، والشروط المسبقة هي لخلق البيئة المناسبة لكي يكون هناك مواجهة بين النظام والمجلس الوطني والمعارضة السورية وكل الشعب السوري”، مشيرة إلى أن “هذه الشروط لا يلبيها النظام ونرى ذلك منذ الساعة الأولى بعد التوقيع على المبادرة والوعد بالالتزام بها، بل كان هناك شهداء وتصعيد وتحريض، وبالتالي نحن لم نتعامل مع المبادرة في مضمونها بل نتعامل مع الشروط التي تفرضها جامعة الدول العربية وتطلب تنفيذها فورا وهذا ما ركزنا عليه كمجلس وطني لأننا نعلم بأن هذا النظام معتاد على المراوغة والكذب “.
We have conditions that ought to be met in order to engage in negotiations.
وتابعت “اعتقد أن الجامعة العربية وأمينها العام المحترم لا يشعر ولا يدرك قدرة هذا النظام على الكذب والمراوغة، ونحن لا نستطيع أن نستمر في الموافقة على فكرة المبادرة والقبول بان ننظر فيها وان نتحدث مع الجامعة عنها إذا استمر العنف، وإذا كان القمع كما هو فلا داعي لحديث عن مبادرة عربية معنا”.
وعن إذا كان هناك إمكانية لعمل سياسي خارج إطار الإطاحة بالنظام السوري، قالت قضماني “ليس هناك أي إمكانية غير تنحي الرئيس والإطاحة بهذا النظام، ونحن نتحدث عن تفاوض لنضع آلية انتقال السلطة إلى حكومة ديمقراطية تمثل إرادة الشعب وليس بإشراف أي من أعضاء هذا النظام، لذللك المطلوب من الأسد التنحي وترك هذا المنصب، وهذا هو مطلب الشعب”.
There is no way out without the stepping down of Jr.
وأضافت “نأمل أن لا ينفذ بشار الأسد التهديدات التي يدلي بها كل يوم عن إحراق المنطقة والبلد ، لذا إذا كان هناك أي حرص عند أي شخص في هذا النظام على سلامة الوطن ليعيدوه إلى الشعب الذي يطالب به وهذا كل ما نريده”، مؤكدة أن “ليس هناك أي توجهات أخرى لهذا المجلس فموقفنا واضح سياسيا وأخلاقيا وليس هناك أي شك أو انحياز عن هذا الخط السياسي وهو سيد موقفنا وما يجمعنا في هذا المجلس
November 4th, 2011, 9:43 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Bronco
You mentioned Zainab,
It is a fact that the family of Zainab were given by the regime a cut body ,cut to pieces, do you deny this fact.
It is a fact that the regime told the family that this body is Zainab, can you deny that?
The fact that the family of Zainab believed the regime ,that the body which was given to Zainab family,was Zainab, can you deny that?
It is a fact that the regime who lied, can you deny that?
November 4th, 2011, 9:47 pm
Revlon said:
Current President of the SNC, Burhan Ghlioun’s reponses to critics
برهان غليون يوجه رسالة للذين ينتقدون المجلس الوطني
2011/11/04نشر فى: غير مصنف
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zc_DOizxqiM
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35055
رد الدكتور برهان غليون على الذبن ينتقدون المجلس الوطني بالنقاط التالية :
1.
المجلس الوطني السوري يمثل معظم الأطياف الرئيسية للشعب السوري .
1. SNC represents most of the spectrum of Syrian society
2.
ولادته بالخارج لا تعني أن المؤسسين من الخارج وإنما أكثرهم من الداخل .Although established in exile, most of its members live on the ground.
3.
اللذين لم يشاركوا مثل هيئة التنسيق الوطنية وبعض الأحزاب الكردية وهيثم مناع وعمار قربى وصبحي حديدي ووحيد صقر وأيضا تجمع العلويين الأحرار ، هم لم يرفضوا المشاركة ولكن طلبوا بعض الوقت للتشاور وأماكنهم محفوظة في المجلس ، والمجلس هيئة مفتوحة لضم كافة أطياف المعارضة .
Other opposition forces and personalities, such as the national coordination assembly, manna3, Qrabi, Hadidi, and Free Alawi Coalition have not refused to join the SNC; They have merely asked for more time for consultation
4.
الإسلاميون والإخوان ليسوا أكثر عددا من العلمانيين ، والأسماء ستصدر قريبا ، والمجلس ليس محاصصة وإنما يضم الفاعلين على الساحة السورية .
Islamists do not outnumber seculars; Names shall be published soon.
5.
المجلس لا يدعو للتدخل العسكري ، ولكن يطلب حماية للمدنيين ، وهذا يعني إجبار الحكومة السورية على استقبال مراقبين دوليين إلى سوريا ، وهناك آليات كثيرة لذلك .
The council does not call for military intervention but for civilian protection, by forcing the regime to allow international observors and other rlated mechanisms.
6.
يدين المجلس سياسات النظام الذي تدعو للتدخل العسكري وللحرب الأهلية ، ولكنه لا يؤيد التدخل العسكري .
The council condemns the regime’s policies that invite military intervention and civil war.
7.
لن نقبل من أحد التدخل في شؤوننا ، دون أخذ رأي المجلس الوطني .
8.
يجب أن نعبيء الرأي العالمي من أجل الضغط لوقف العنف في سوريا وليس التدخل العسكري
We need to mass the world opinion to halt violence against civilians and not for military intervention.
______________________________________________________________
Personal Comment:
Mr Ghalyoon still believes that the regime will surrender peacefully, something the constituency he owes his legitimacy to completely disagrees with.
A leader should either heed his consituencies advice or explain and earn their approval ‘to heed his!
Ghalioun has done neither!
_________________________________________________________________
November 4th, 2011, 9:47 pm
Revlon said:
Actor, Fares Al Hilou on how he felt during his first anti-regime demonstration:
They were memorable moments; I felt I could hear my voice for the first time in my life!
فنان سوري: تلقيت تهديدًا بالتصفية بعد تظاهري ضد نظام الأسد
– 2011/11/04نشر فى: ثقافة وفنون
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35012
قال الفن…ان السوري فارس الحلو إنه تعرض لمضايقات وتهديدات بالتصفية، بعد مشاركته مؤخرًا بمظاهرة الميدان ضد النظام السوري.
وأضاف الحلو، في تصريحات خاصة لـmbc.net، إنه تلقى أيضًا شتائم بذيئة وإهانات على جواله، وكذلك على صفحته على “الفيس بوك”، موضحًا أنه لم يُستدعى للتحقيق من قبل أية جهة أمنية سورية، بعد مظاهرة الميدان التي شارك فيها فنانون ومثقفون سوريون، واعتقل الأمن السوري على إثرها بعض المشاركين.
في الوقت نفسه، نفى الفنان السوري تصريحات نسبتها له بعض المواقع بعد مظاهرة الميدان قال فيها إن هتافه بإسقاط النظام أهم صوت خرج من حنجرته.
ولفت الحلو إلى أن التصريح الوحيد الذي صدر عنه كان من خلال صفحته الخاصة على “الفيس بوك”.
وقال: “بعد خروجي في مظاهرة “الميدان” كتبت على صفحتي الشخصية على “الفيس بوك” مقالاً بعنوان “أيها المحبون الرائعون.. شكرًا لكم”، ولم أدل بأي تصريح لأية محطة فضائية أو إذاعة أو أية وسيلة إعلامية.
كان الفنان السوري كتب في مقالة نشرها على صفحته الخاصة قال فيها: “كنا قلة قليلة وقلقة، وما إن وصلنا حتى دُهشت من حجم المجموعة وقد كبرت.. كثر انضموا لها، صرنا في وسطها شباب وفتيات أغلبهم لا أعرفهم، فجأة صدح صوت سماوي لأحد الشجعان بهتاف البدء ولتردد وراءه الحناجر الذهبية، هي يا لله هي بالله ما منركع غير لألله.. وليعقبه بهتافات تنفي الطائفية والإثنية لصالح الحرية والمدنية، وهتافات لإسقاط النظام والتعاضد مع المحافظات والبلدات الثائرة”.
وجاء أيضًا في مقالة الحلو: “لحظات لا تنسى.. كأني أسمع صوتي للمرة الأولى مع قشعريرة رقيقة جعلت عيناي تدمعان كأني اسمع صوتي لأول مرة، كانت التظاهرة كعرس يختال على جنبات السوق المزدحمة بالناس”.
November 4th, 2011, 9:54 pm
Revlon said:
“Daughter of Latakia’s memories of Shabbeeha in the 80’s and 90’s”
ابنة الساحل تتحدث عن ذكرياتها عن الشبّيحة وسادتهم لكن بلون الخوف!
2011/11/04نشر فى: مقالات وتحليلات
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35043
(إلى مدينتي اللاذقية: أيّ قدر وسمَك بكلّ هذه الذاكرة!!)
حين أتى “أبو رمّاح” إلى حارتنا في مدينة اللاذقية كانت تبدو سيماء (التّشبيح) عليه: رأس محلوق ولحية طويلة غير مشذبة وكرش ولباس مموّه!. كنا في أواخر الثمانينيات وقتذاك، وكانت الأيام تبدو كأنها قطعة منسية من فيلم تراجيدي قديم بالأسود والأبيض.
بدأ بإخراج كراسيه إلى الحارة واستقبال ضيوفه هناك، وبالتالي كان يعلّق ساخراً على الرائح والغادي أياً كان. ولطالما سخر مني وأنا أنوء بثقل أكياس السكر والرز قادمة من طابور طويل أمام المؤسسة الاستهلاكية. ثم صار يصفّ سياراته في الحارة، ومن بعد غرز ثلاثة قضبان حديدية ثخينة على باب الحارة وبينها سلاسل معدنية فأغلق الحارة تماماً! ولم يجرؤ أحد حتى اليوم على سؤاله: “من أين أتيت بهذا الحق؟”.. مع الزمن صار اسم الحارة “حارة أبو رمّاح”، حتى نحن كنّا ندلّ رفاقنا على بيتنا: “في البناية الملاصقة لحارة أبو رمّاح.. عرفتها؟!”.. مع مرور الوقت كذلك زرع “أبو رمّاح” نباتاته في الحارة ونصب شادراً دائماً ومراجيح لأطفاله، فقد صارت الحارة حقاً مكتسباً له، كما صار البلد حقاً مكتسباً للشبّيحة أمثاله وأسيادهم.
أعتقد أن سنوات الثمانينيات وأوائل التسعينيات تلحّ على الكثيرين من أبناء مدينتي اللاذقية، كما تلحّ عليّ في الآونة الأخيرة، ربما لأن الكثير مما يحدث اليوم شبيه إلى حدّ بعيد بما حصل في ذلك الوقت: الخوف، الترقب، الحذر.. والشبيحة.
الشبيحة كانوا مرافقين لطفولتي ومراهقتي، ولسوء الحظ كانت المنطقة التي نسكن فيها مليئة ببنايات يتراكم الشبيحة أمام بواباتها ليل نهار. لم أفهم البتة، كما لا أفهم اليوم، ما السبب الكامن وراء كل تلك الغطرسة والكبرياء و”الاستفشار” الذي ينثال منهم، والذي لا يجاهدون لإخفاءه أمام أي شخص كبر أم صغر. ولطالما رأيت رجالاً محترمين يمرّون من أمامهم، وهم يحتلون رصيفاً ما، مطرقين إلى الأرض ومهرولين خوفاً، وإن سمعوا بآذانهم شتائم أو عبارات ساخرة منهم سيتظاهرون بأنهم لم يسمعوها.
سيبدو طبيعياً للغاية أن نرى مجموعة منهم يتسابقون بسياراتهم في شوارع المدينة الضيقة وبأقصى سرعة، يروّعون الناس بإطلاق النار في الهواء
. في أوائل التسعينيات مثلاً حدثت حرب في شارع 8 آذار، وهو من أكبر شوارع المدينة، لأن شبيحة “بيت مخلوف” وشبيحة “بيت ديب” اختلفوا وراحوا يطلقون النار على بعضهم. قتل رجلان وامرأة كان القدر الظالم قد جعلهم يمرون هناك في ذلك الوقت، ومرّت الحادثة كأنها لم تمرّ
!!
كان من الطبيعي أيضاً أن يُعجب أحد الشبيحة بسيارة جديدة لأحد شباب المدينة، فيلحقون بها وينزلونه منها ثم يأخذونها تاركينه مذهولاً ومرعوباً في وسط الشارع. أو يعجب أحدهم أيضاً بفتاة جميلة فيختطفها إن لم تقبل الخروج معه من تلقاء نفسها، وحدث ولا حرج عن بيوت دوهمت واختطف من فيها، وما إلى ذلك من حكايات تكاد تقارب الخيال لكنها واقع حقيقي تشهد عليه ذاكرة (اللوادقة) حتى اليوم.
أستاذي في الجامعة “سمير غفر” قتل في أوائل التسعينيات وهو واقف على موقف الباص، مع ثلاثة رجال وامرأة حامل، لأن هناك سيارة مسعورة لم يستطع سائقها التحكم بها، ولم يعاقب ذلك السائق/ الشبّيح بالتأكيد. كنا لا نجرؤ على الحديث عنه خوفاً من “الجدران التي لها آذان” على الرغم من أن أحاديث مرعبة عن رأسه التي فصلت عن جسده كانت تتطاير هنا وهناك.
صديقي في الجامعة “حسان الأعسر” قتل أيضاً لأنه دافع عن فتاة التجأت إليه في باص الدولة، وكان عدد من الشباب/ الشبيحة يطاردونها. هو الآخر غيّبناه عن أحاديثنا خوفاً لكن صورة السكين التي انغرزت في كتفه ووصلت القلب لم تغادر ذاكرتي.. والد حسان غادر البلاد بعد تلك الحادثة من غير رجعة.
أما “هالة العاقل” فاسم مازالت اللاذقية تهرج بقصته، وهي فتاة اختطفها الشبّيحة واغتصبوها، ثم ألقوها عارية ومقتولة أمام باب بيت أهلها.
كان يمكن لأي معاون باص أن يهين أي راكب دون أن يستطيع الأخير “الخائف” الرد لأن المعاون من الشبيحة، وكان يمكن لأي جاهل أن يروّع حياً بأكمله دون أن يجرؤ أحد على الرد لأنه (منهم).
الشبيحة وسادتهم كانوا القانون والدولة، وهم الزعماء وهم “الفصل والحكم”
أرى الشبيحة اليوم ينتشرون من جديد في شوارع المدن السورية، وليس في شوارع مدينتي فحسب، يشيعون الرعب أينما حلوا وكأنهم استيقظوا من سباتهم، لكن هذه المرة وجدوا لأنفسهم وظيفة جديدة، شكروا ربهم عليها، وهي ضرب المتظاهرين وتخويف المعارضين والناشطين وتفريغ تلك الشحنة الطاغية بداخلهم، خصوصاً وأنهم صاروا يُلبسون المهمة غايات وطنية، بما أنهم وأسيادهم يحتكرون المواطنة والوطن.
اليوم هناك الآلاف من “أبو رماح” يصولون ويجولون، وفي الكثير من المناطق السورية لم يحتج رجال الأمن أو الجيش للتدخل في قمع المظاهرات فقد قام الشبيحة بالواجب من كل قلبهم.
ما يحدث اليوم ليس بجديد أبداً!! إنه نتاج سنوات طويلة مضت من التراكم، ولأنه كذلك فهو يحتاج إلى فضح وتهديم تلك الذاكرة المتجذرة فينا: ذاكرة الخوف.
(ملاحظة: كنت قد كتبت قبلاً عن “أبو رمّاح” باسم مغاير مخافة أن يصل إليه الأمر بطريقة ما، تستطيعون بالتالي أن تتخيلوا إلى أين وصل فينا تراكم الخوف!!)
November 4th, 2011, 9:55 pm
Revlon said:
Son of political refugee, Mamoun AlHomsi wasarrested by Regime forces yesterday while on the way back from the University.
اعتقال نجل المعارض مامون الحمصي
2011/11/04نشر فى: أخبار محلية
http://all4syria.info/web/archives/35004
زمان الوصل
أعلن المتحدث باسم الجالية السورية في القاهرة الناشط والمعارض السوري مأمون الحمصي أن قوات الأمن السورية اعتقلت مساء أمس الأول نجله (ياسين) في مدينة حمص خلال عودته من الجامعة.
وقال الحمصي في تصريح للصحافيين إن أبناءه الذي يقيمون في سوريا ممنوعون من مغادرة البلاد للالتحاق به في الخارج وإنه يعتبر اعتقال نجله وصمة عار جديدة في جبين النظام السوري.
وأوضح الحمصي أن دبابات الجيش السوري تقصف دون هوادة مدينة حمص وأن السكان هناك معرضون للإبادة. معتبراً أنه لا جدوى لأي حوار مع النظام القائم.
وأشار إلى أن عملية اعتقال نجله هي وسيلة جديدة للعقاب من النظام للضغط على رموز المعارضة لإثنائهم عن معارضته والخضوع له وهذه محاولات مرفوضة من جانب كل الشرفاء
November 4th, 2011, 9:58 pm
Revlon said:
4 soldiers defect in Baniyas, and join the FSA
أوغاريت بانياس , انشقاق 4 جنود 2 11 2011
November 4th, 2011, 9:58 pm
Revlon said:
Another group of defectors choose to announce their intentions:
We, army soldiers, hereby announce our defection from Asad mob forces to join the Free Syrian Army.
We have formed the phalange of the martyrs of freedom, in Horan region.
We hereby pledge to dedicate our selves to the protection of peaceful demonstrators from Asad mob.
Viva proud free Syria
Assalamu 3alaykom
04/11/2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TvHBp_NdHU&feature=player_embedded
الجيش السوري الحر اعلان تشكيل كتيبة شهداء الحرية
November 4th, 2011, 10:00 pm
bronco said:
#318
Ref: Zeinab hoax
…And the media, eager for a scoop, fell into the trap without any verification and they inundated the world with the headline of the tortured and decapitated woman by the regime.
Majed, the foreign media have been jumping on any news that show that Syria’s government is evil and they usually ignore the ones that show that the Opposition is evil.
Of the 20 killed today in Homs, how many were soldiers? How many were ‘peaceful’ demonstrators.
You are the one calling for the FSA to kill soldiers, so why are you surprised there are unspecified deaths reported?
November 4th, 2011, 10:13 pm
irritated said:
Revlon
“Phalange martyrs of freedom” Are they kamizake?
Have you done the count? 5,000 or 15,000 defectors?
November 4th, 2011, 10:15 pm
bronco said:
Calamity Vicky goes soft on Bahrain’s killing of the 70 years old man.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) — The U.S. State Department on Friday called for restraint from all parties in Bahrain after thousands of Shiite opposition members clashed with the Gulf country’s security forces.
The statement, made by State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, came after Ali al-Daihi, father of the main opposition group al-Wefaq’s deputy secretary-general Hussein al-Daihi, died on Thursday reportedly from the wounds inflicted by police, triggering Friday’s massive clashes.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-11/05/c_131230295.htm
“Obviously, our condolences go out to Mr. al-Daihi’s family and to his loved ones,” Nuland said at a regular briefing. “We understand that in connection with the circumstances of the father ‘s death, the family has now filed a criminal complaint with the Bahraini police.”
“It is a fragile time in Bahrain, as all sides wait for the Bahraini Independent Commission of Inquiry report, so we’re obviously urging restraint on all sides, but particularly transparency with regard to the investigation of this case,” she said.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-11/05/c_131230295.htm
November 4th, 2011, 10:34 pm
Norman said:
can Arabs from other Arab states get into Syria without visas, and should they still have that privilege.
November 4th, 2011, 10:36 pm
ann said:
That secret nuclear facility in Syria? It’s a textile factory, researchers say in new report
11/04/2011
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/checkpoint-washington/post/that-secret-syrian-nuclear-facility-its-a-textile-factory-researchers-say/2011/11/04/gIQA0MV7mM_blog.html
After a four-year search for hidden atomic facilities in Syria, U.N. officials appeared this week to have finally struck gold: News reports linked a large factory in eastern Syria to a suspected clandestine effort to spin uranium gas into fuel for nuclear bombs.
But after further probing by private researchers, Syria’s mystery plant is looking far less mysterious. A new report concludes that the facility and its thousands of fast-spinning machines were intended to make not uranium, but cloth — a very ordinary cotton-polyester.
“It is, and always has been, a textile factory,” said one of the researchers, Jeffrey Lewis, a nuclear policy expert at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies and publisher of the blog Arms Control Wonk.
Lewis and his colleagues were initially intrigued by news reports that linked Syria’s al-Hasakah Spinning Co. to the country’s clandestine nuclear program, which came to light four years ago when Israeli warplanes bombed a building that turned out to be a partly completed plutonium reactor.
The reports, citing Western diplomats and former U.N. officials, said aerial images of the factory were being intensely studied by the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, which has been scouring Syria for evidence of other hidden atomic facilities.
While the al-Hasakah plant clearly is now used as a textile mill, its size and shape caught the attention of nuclear experts. Viewed from the air, the facility closely resembles a uranium enrichment plant designed by Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan, the one-time head of an international nuclear smuggling ring.
Khan had extensive contacts with Syrian leaders in the 1980s, and some nuclear experts believe he provided them with blueprints for nuclear facilities. U.S. intelligence officials say Syria eventually launched a clandestine nuclear effort centered around the plutonium reactor that was destroyed by Israeli bombs on Sept. 6, 2007. Syria has never acknowledged seeking atomic weapons, and it only recently granted the IAEA limited access to other sites that the agency believes may have been part of its secret nuclear program.
The IAEA has never publicly identified the al-Hasakah factory as part of Syria’s nuclear network, but the renewed focus on the plant prompted Lewis to dig into old records and satellite photos. With help from a European colleague, he traced the facility’s history and eventually located the 62-year-old German engineer who supervised its construction three decades ago.
The engineer appeared mystified by the accounts suggesting that the al-Hasakah plant was originally designed to make enriched uranium. “He burst out, ‘I built that thing!’ ” recalled Lewis’s colleague, German journalist Paul-Anton Krueger, who interviewed the man.
The engineer described how he oversaw the construction of the plant and the installation of 75,000 machines called spindles to spin cotton and polyester into fabric. He said he had last visited the plant in 1991 and “found the factory working rather poorly, but it was still spinning — cotton, and polyester,” Krueger wrote to Lewis in his account of the interview.
To Lewis, the episode underscores the difficulties of ferreting out nuclear secrets using computers and satellite imagery, but it hardly lets Syria off the hook. The search for hidden nuclear sites continues, he said.
November 4th, 2011, 10:38 pm
bronco said:
#382
Yes, Norman, Syria is the only arab country that does not require visas from any Arab country.
They should implement visas from Arab countries that require visa for Syrians: that is called reciprocity. That would also bring some needed money.
November 4th, 2011, 10:42 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Bronco
You are still denying that there was tortured and cut body,committed by your devil regime,whether her name was Zainab or someother name,the fact that the regime tortured and kill that person, this is an evil regime,how do we know that that body that has been killed by your beloved regime, how do we know that her name was not Zainab, several people named Zainab,it is the regime who lied, you can not deny that.
FSA are angles,they are there to defend the people who are subject to brutal killing by the regime.self defence is legitimate principle by all morally accepted societies, are you saying that self defense is wrong?the evil soldiers who betrayed the people deserve to be stopped from killing civilian,Shabbiha has to be killed,the people must carry armes to defend themself,so dictatorship and tyrany will never succeed,what would you do if someone shot at you or your kids? let him kill your family, no defense?.
November 4th, 2011, 10:43 pm
irritated said:
#329. Ann
Next the Omayyade Mosque will be suspected to be hidden nuclear plant because viewed from a plane, it looks like one.
IAEA is an expensive den of geniuses, they proved it in Iraq.
November 4th, 2011, 10:46 pm
bronco said:
majedAlkhaldoon
“there was tortured and cut body,committed by your devil regime”
Sorry Majed, are you Sherlock Holmes? how do we know who tortured and decapitated that woman? I would say it was an honor crime where usually the sinful woman is decapitated. Of course for you any dead body in the morgue is the result of ‘my evil’ regime. Sorry, it is absurd and you can’t prove it. So it is only an suspicion, not a reality.
Do you say that killing soldiers with road side bombs is ‘protecting’ the demonstrators?
November 4th, 2011, 10:55 pm
ann said:
AQ rubbishes allegations
By: Sikander Shaheen | Published: November 05, 2011
http://nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Politics/05-Nov-2011/AQ-rubbishes-allegations
ISLAMABAD – The architect of Pakistan’s nuclear programme Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan has rubbished the allegations of backing Syria for building up its nuclear programme, terming the accusations Israel’s conspiracy for a justification to launch a crackdown on Syria.
“Ridiculous, absurd and baseless. These are the same ages old and far-fetched concocted stories that have been proved unfounded and untrue so many a times,” said Dr AQ Khan when asked to comment on reports regarding his alleged involvement in Syria’s reportedly abandoned nuclear programme.
“Syria is the last line of defence against Israel. After what they (Israel and the US) have done with Iraq, Lebanon and Libya, the only country that deters them is Syria,” said the nuclear scientist during a chat with this newspaper on Friday.
A news agency report says satellite images have provided UN investigators with fresh evidence that the Syrian government once worked with AQ Khan, “the world’s most prolific nuclear weapons merchant.” According to the news agency, the images reveal that a complex in northwest Syria appears to match Khan’s designs for a uranium enrichment plant that were sold to Moammar Gaddaffi’s government in Libya. “The UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency also has obtained correspondence between Khan and a Syrian government official, Muhidin Issa, who proposed scientific cooperation and a visit to Khan’s laboratories following Pakistan’s successful nuclear test in 1998,” the report says. It states that Syria may have been pursuing two routes to an atomic bomb: uranium as well as plutonium. IAEA investigators had already said they believe that a Syrian site bombed by Israeli warplanes in 2007 was a plutonium production reactor.
During Friday’s conversation, Dr Khan regretted what he termed as ‘one-sided propaganda’ against him. According to Khan, his version was not incorporated in the aforesaid story nor was he even approached for a comment by the news agency, that, he said, undermined the journalistic ethics and obligations. “This is totally one-sided propaganda only to pave way for Israel’s intervention in Syria.”
According to Dr AQ Khan, Hizbullah has posed a serious challenge to the interests of foreign powers in Syria and Lebanon that “explains why Israel and the US are so desperate to take on Syria.”
Hizbullah, a militant cum political organisation has a strong presence in Lebanon and Syria. Headed by Shi’ite Muslim leader Hassan Nasrullah, the organisation defines its four key objectives being Israel’s eviction from Palestine, anti-imperialism, rule of law and supremacy of justice.
“Do you remember what they did in Lebanon just a few years ago? They turned that country into ashes and this time, they want to do the same with Syria,” Dr Khan said referring to Israel’s aerial strikes on Lebanon in 2006.
The Israeli fighter jets had bombarded sophisticated bombs at Lebanon’s capital Beirut and other cities that widely destroyed infrastructure and brought human loss following Israeli government accusations that Hizbullah militants had fired rockets from Lebanon-Israel border to kill nearly a dozen Israeli soldiers. The aerial assault continued for over a month till the UN struck a ceasefire deal between the two states. Israel termed the assault as Israel-Hizbullah war.
“It’s not about nukes. We have had enough of this rubbish. It’s about Hizbullah that keeps challenging the highhandedness of Israel. Hizbullah is active in Lebanon and Syria and both these states border Israel so you can well understand why they are out to get Hizbullah.”
“Their accusations against me are bunch of blatant lies. Did they ever prove anything? If they have any evidence, why don’t they just show?” a visibly aggrieved Khan said. “They lied when they attacked Iraq, they lied when they destroyed Lebanon and they would just keep on lying on one pretext or other. Where are Iraq’s nuclear weapons by the way?” Khan continued to say.
On safety of Pakistan’s nuclear assets, Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan said, “Our nuclear weapons are in safe hands. Those who say Pakistan’s nuclear programme is vulnerable are actually those who know nothing about nukes. Mr Kidwai is a capable man who knows how to abide by his responsibilities.”
Lieutenant General (Retd) Khalid Kidwai heads Strategic Planning Division (SPD) that directly supervises Pakistan’s nuclear programme.
Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to UN Ambassador Abdullah Hussain Haroon had said Thursday that world powers stance on Pakistans’ nukes was unprincipled and unjustified. “We expect those powers to do what they demand from us, come clean on their own nuclear programmes.”
November 4th, 2011, 11:06 pm
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
“…My focus is Israel’s own population of Muslims, known as Israeli Arabs….”
Israel still have these, send them to Doha Qatar dim wit Israeli, lets build Israel and the Temple man. What are you waiting for, if you want me to visit Israel get rid of rag heads and bring in more Russian Jews.
November 4th, 2011, 11:31 pm
majedkhaldoun said:
Bronco
What proof you have to say it is honored crime?Was Hamza Khateeb also honor crime? Or all those death by your evil regime all are honored crime, Shouldn’t the honor crime be investigated,This is really absurd statement.
November 5th, 2011, 12:33 am
majedkhaldoun said:
The AL must punish the evil syrian regime,and soon,The regime lied and violated what they agreed on, AL must turn the regime violation to the UN, Bashar made a major mistake,he and his supporters must pay for their lies.
November 5th, 2011, 12:44 am
Ghufran said:
يا حمير العالم اتحدوا
http://www.bbc.co.uk/arabic/middleeast/2011/11/111103_somalia_kenya_donkeys.shtml
November 5th, 2011, 12:44 am
Dale Andersen said:
Memo To: MAJEDKHAKDOUN
RE: “…Bronco, what proof do you have to say it is an honor crime?…”
Shhhh! Careful, Majed. You’re asking Bronco Billy to prove all those off-the-cuff, shoot-from-the-hip “explanations.” Remember, Bronco’s a regime pom-pom girl, a shill for the Shabeeha, a cheerleader for the al-Mukhabarat. Proof? Who needs proof when you’re bucking for Besho…
November 5th, 2011, 12:46 am
majedkhaldoun said:
http://alquds.co.uk/index.asp?fname=today4qpt999.htm&arc=data\2011\11\11-044qpt999.htm
November 5th, 2011, 12:46 am
Ghufran said:
حتى التماثيل عليها ارتداء الملايه
قام منظمو المؤتمر الانتخابي لحزب النور السلفي في مصر بتغطية تمثال ضخم في وسط ميدان الرأس السوداء بالإسكندرية بالقماش والحبال، وحجبه تماما عن الحاضرين.
وذكرت وسائل إعلامية أن “الحاضرين في المؤتمر الانتخابي للحزب فوجئوا بقيام منظمي المؤتمر بتغطية تمثال ضخم في وسط الميدان بالقماش والحبال، وحجبه تماما عن الحاضرين، معتبرين أنه “خارج”.
ويصور التمثال الإله اليوناني زيوس في هيئة ٤ حوريات بحر، يجلسن على منصة رخامية.
وقال أحد المنظمين إن “التمثال كان مواجهاً للمنصة التي جلس عليها قيادات الحزب، لذلك قرروا تغطية التمثال بستائر من القماش، وتم ربطها بإحكام بالحبال لحجب معالمه عن الحضور”.
وكتب المنظمون لافتة علقوها على التمثال تقول “المرأة المصرية هي التي تستقطع من وقتها لزوجها ولا تنسى بناء وطنها”.
وكان قادة الحزب السلفي أعلنوا في مؤتمرات عديدة رفضهم التماثيل التي تخرج على التقاليد الإسلامية وهو ما تسبب في جدل خصوصا بعد اتهام أعضاء في الدعوة السلفية بهدم تمثال فرعوني للملك سنوسرت في المنصورة.
Remember the rare Buddhist statutes the Talibans bombed ?
November 5th, 2011, 1:12 am
Ghufran said:
لا تستطيع المؤسسه العسكريه الامريكيه العيش بدون عدو
في البدايه كان الاتحاد السوفييتي ثم القاعده و الان ايران ثم الصين ثم مخلوقات من المريخ
قال مسؤول عسكري أمريكي رفيع المستوي امس إن إيران هي أكبر تهديد عسكري للولايات المتحدة في الشرق الأوسط متجاوزة تنظيم القاعدة. وقال المسؤول مشترطا عدم الكشف عن اسمه “أكبر تهديد للولايات المتحدة ولمصالحنا ولأصدقائنا… هو إيران.” وأضاف المسؤول الذي كان يتحدث في منتدي في واشنطن أنه رغم ذلك لا يعتقد أن إيران ترغب في إشعال صراع وإنه لا يعلم ما إذا كانت الجمهورية الإسلامية قررت صنع سلاح نووي. فيما رفض الرئيس الفرنسي نيكولا ساركوزي امس البحث في فرضية توجيه ضربات وقائية ضد المنشآت النووية الايرانية، معتبرا ان ثمة “طريقا” ما زال متوافرا بين هذا السيناريو والعقوبات التي لم تسفر حتي الان عن نتيجة كبيرة. في وقت احتفلت ايران امس بذكري السيطرة علي السفارة الأمريكية في طهران عام 1979 بإحراق الأعلام وترديد هتافات “الموت لأمريكا” في ما يمثل تصعيدا في الخطاب المناهض للولايات المتحدة قبل نشر تقرير محوري للأمم المتحدة عن برنامجها النووي. وأحرق آلاف الطلبة العلم الأمريكي ودمية للعم سام وصورا للرئيس باراك أوباما امام المجمع الراقي بوسط طهران الذي كان مقر البعثة الدبلوماسية الأمريكية. وقال الأمين العام للمجلس الأعلي للأمن القومي سعيد جليلي للحشد امام مقر السفارة السابقة “امريكا ارتكبت أعمالا إرهابية ضد ايران ودول أخري… سندعم من هم ضد سياسات امريكا خارج وداخل امريكا.” واضاف أن ايران ستقدم للأمم المتحدة أدلة علي مخططات أمريكية ضد ايران وأن وزارة الخارجية ستستدعي السفير السويسري اليوم للاحتجاج.
November 5th, 2011, 1:25 am
jad said:
العقيد الأسعد: سنستأنف عملياتنا ضد قوات الاسد بعد أن انكشفت نواياها
أعلن قائد “الجيش السوري الحر” العقيد المنشق رياض الأسعد لـ”الشرق الأوسط” أن “جيشه سيستأنف العمليات العسكرية “النوعية” ضد قوات الرئيسالسوري بشار الأسد، بعد أن “انكشفت نوايا” النظام في “جمعة الله أكبر”.
ولفت الأسعد الى انه “أعطينا فرصة للنظام السوري يومين بعدما أعلن عن موافقته على المبادرة العربية، وذلك كي نكشف كذبه ومناورته، ومنذ اليوم وبعدما انكشفت نواياه في “جمعة الله أكبر” سنعاود تنفيذ العمليات العسكرية النوعية وستكون تحركاتنا بشكل أكبر وأوسع”.
ونفى الأسعد ما نشرته صحيفة “ديلي تلغراف” لناحية “تخطيطه ليكون جيشه الجناح العسكري للمعارضة السورية ضد نظام الرئيس بشار الأسد”، وقال “نرفض أن نكون تابعين لأي طرف، وسأعمد إلى تشكيل مجلس عسكري في أقرب وقت ممكن”.
وعما إذا كان هناك أي تنسيق فيما يتعلق بهذه العمليات مع المجلس الوطني السوري الذي يرفض أعضاؤه تحويل الثورة إلى عسكرية، لفت إلى أنه “ليس هناك أي اتصال على المستوى الرئاسي بل على مستوى شخصيات محددة”. وأضاف “نحن منشقون عن الجيش السوري ويحق لنا الدفاع عن أنفسنا وعن شعبنا عسكريا، ولمن يظن أن هذا النظام السوري سيسقط سلميا فهو واهم، لذا نرفض البقاء على الثورة السلمية، وسأعمد إلى تشكيل مجلس وطني عسكري في أقرب وقت ممكن وسيكون لنا برنامج خاص نعلن عنه في حينه”. وأكد أن “الانشقاقات تزيد يوما بعد يوم ويمكنني التأكيد أننا تخطينا الـ 15 ألف عسكري”.
November 5th, 2011, 1:44 am
jad said:
A Grand Tour
Photos of Syria in happier times.
From the Mediterranean Coast to the southern desert to the fertile plain along withe border with Iraq, Syria is a visual feast. While today’s headlines paint a picture of deepening divisions and endless bloodletting, Syrians of all sects and political affiliations take pride at being a part of one of the world’s most ancient civilizations.
The photographs that follow show a glimpse of daily life Syria before the revolution. The rights to use them were generously provided by Creative Syria, a project of the Syrian Cultural Center of Montreal.
http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2011/11/04/syria_grand_tour?page=0%2C0
November 5th, 2011, 1:47 am
jad said:
معركة دمشق… مستوحاة من خطة إسقاط طرابلس الغرب
نضال حمادة
هي خطة لافتعال مشاكل في العاصمة السورية بعد إفشال حوار الجامعة العربية. الخطة تستوحي من خطة إسقاط طرابلس الغرب خطوطها العريضة مع مراعاة لخصوصية الوضع السوري والفارق بين سورية وليبيا. وتفاصيل هذه الخطة نقلها لنا أكثر من مصدر فرنسي وعربي في العاصمة الفرنسية باريس فضلا عن أن كوادر مهمة في الحراك السوري المعارض يتحدثون عن هذا السيناريو الذي سوف يبدأ تطبيقه بعد أن يتم إفشال الحوار في القاهرة واتهام النظام السوري بالمسؤولية عن الفشل.
المعلومات التي وصلتنا من المصادر المذكورة أعلاه والتي تتمتع بالمصداقية فضلا عن تعداد المصادر واختلاف اتجاهاتها وأهوائها تفيد بما يلي: بدأت منذ شهر تقريبا عملية واسعة لإدخال ناشطين في المعارضة السورية من الذي تمرسوا على الاضطرابات في المدن السورية إلى العاصمة دمشق وفق خطة مدروسة تم الإعداد لها بعناية فائقة وتتم متابعتها مباشرة من جهات غربية وعربية.
وبحسب المصادر الموثوقة تم لحد الآن إدخال عدد كبير من الناشطين إلى أحياء مختلفة من دمشق فيما تستمر المحاولات لإدخال المزيد من هؤلاء وتأمين الاستقرار لهم في مناطق محددة داخل أحياء العصمة السورية وفي محيطها. ولم تحدد المصادر عدد الذين تم إدخالهم لكن العمل جارٍ على إدخال المئات في المدى القريب العاجل قبل حلول ساعة الصفر التي يلزمها إدخال العدد الكافي المطلوب، فضلا عن لزوم فشل عملية الحوار المزمع إجراؤها في القاهرة تحت مظلة الجامعة العربية.
المصادر تضيف أن القرار النهائي لإفشال الحوار في القرار قد اتخذ غربيا وخليجيا وأتى بيان المجلس الوطني الاستباقي لقبول سورية فضلا عن تصريحات رئيسه وأعضائه بُعيد الإعلان عن الموافقة نتيجة لهذا القرار الذي تم إبلاغه تحديدا إلى المجلس الوطني عبر مفكر عربي معروف، هو الوصي من قبل هذه الدول على المعارضة السورية وبالتحديد المجلس الوطني.
وتقول المصادر أيضا إن الخطة جاهزة لإفشال الحوار في القاهرة وهي تعتمد على الاستمرار في التجمعات وافتعال أعمال القتل واتهام الجيش السوري والنظام بارتكابها مع استمرار التغطية الإعلامية والإصرار على مسؤولية النظام عن استمرار أعمال العنف ومواكبة هذا الأمر عبر تغطية مستمرة ومقابلات تركز على أن الجيش السوري يقتل وأن النظام لم يلتزم بقرارات لجنة الحوار العربية وشروطها ما يجعل الأوضاع تذهب باتجاه التدويل والتدخل العسكري على الطريقة الليبية وهذا هو الهدف الأساس للدول الغربية والخليجية الراعية للهجمة على سورية.
أما بنود الخطة كما حصلنا عليها فهي التالية:
أ – تأمين دخول مئات العناصر الى دمشق وتامين استقرارهم في مناطق مختلفة خصوصا حول الساحات العامة ( العباسيين والأمويين).
ب- استمرار العمل بالتظاهرات والأعمال المسلحة والتركيز على أعداد القتلى مع التذكير أنهم متظاهرين سلميين كما جرت العادة .ج- التركيز الإعلامي على عدم التزام النظام السوري ببنود ورقة الجامعة العربية.
د – التركيز على فشل الحوار وعدم جدواه
ه- مطالبة الجامعة العربية بتجميد عضوية سورية وتدويل القضية
و – إعلان الجامعة فشل الحوار وتحميل النظام في دمشق المسؤولية وتجميد عضوية سورية وتدويل القضية السوري.
ز- صدور ردود أفعال غربية وبالخصوص أميركية وفرنسية تدعوا لتحرك دولي ضد الرئيس الأسد ونظامه.
ح- بالتزامن مع البيانات الغربية يتم تحريك العناصر التي أدخلت إلى دمشق تظاهرا وأعمال مسلحة.
يبقى بعد كل هذا التخطيط الشيطاني أن القوم ليس لديهم جواب واضح حول دوى هذا العمل طالما أن الأطلسي لن يتدخل عسكريا ضد سورية، غير أن حقد البعض جعله مستعد لهدم المعبد على من وما فيه رغبة في الانتقام ليس إلا..كان الله في عون سورية وشعبها…
November 5th, 2011, 1:53 am
Revlon said:
343.
العقيد الأسعد: سنستأنف عملياتنا ضد قوات الاسد بعد أن انكشفت نواياها
أعلن قائد “الجيش السوري الحر” العقيد المنشق رياض الأسعد لـ”الشرق الأوسط” أن “جيشه سيستأنف العمليات العسكرية “النوعية” ضد قوات الرئيسالسوري بشار الأسد، بعد أن “انكشفت نوايا” النظام في “جمعة الله أكبر”.
ولفت الأسعد الى انه “أعطينا فرصة للنظام السوري يومين بعدما أعلن عن موافقته على المبادرة العربية، وذلك كي نكشف كذبه ومناورته، ومنذ اليوم وبعدما انكشفت نواياه في “جمعة الله أكبر” سنعاود تنفيذ العمليات العسكرية النوعية وستكون تحركاتنا بشكل أكبر وأوسع”.
ونفى الأسعد ما نشرته صحيفة “ديلي تلغراف” لناحية “تخطيطه ليكون جيشه الجناح العسكري للمعارضة السورية ضد نظام الرئيس بشار الأسد”، وقال “نرفض أن نكون تابعين لأي طرف، وسأعمد إلى تشكيل مجلس عسكري في أقرب وقت ممكن”.
وعما إذا كان هناك أي تنسيق فيما يتعلق بهذه العمليات مع المجلس الوطني السوري الذي يرفض أعضاؤه تحويل الثورة إلى عسكرية، لفت إلى أنه “ليس هناك أي اتصال على المستوى الرئاسي بل على مستوى شخصيات محددة”.
__________________________________________________________________ Personal Comment:
The SNC’s recalcitrance in accommodating the FSA is another strategic mistake that they have added to their reluctance in vigorously pursuing force to defend civilians.
Accommodating the FSA now as an active and not a distractive part of the civil movement is necessary.
The FSA leadership have every right to have a say on how best to protect civilians, more so than most of current SNC members; They have been risking their and their families life and living to protect the civilians while SNC leading members insist of affording their priority and reverence for the peaceful fidelity of the revolution.
Furthermore, engaging FSA leadership at this early stage would serve to immerse them in the traditions of civil, democratic decision making and henceforth, into becoming a nucleus for an army that understand and respect democracy and take pride in serving rather than ruling the people!
November 5th, 2011, 2:25 am
Revlon said:
Video clip of a demonstration with three notable posters and banners:
– LIAR
– The AL Initiative asks people to:
Self blindfold so as not to see tanks,
Kill themselves so the regime does not kill them,
and Chop their tongues so they can not tell what is happening!
– He who threatens to burn the region can only be considered a mobster, not a head of state!
4 11 2011 As Sanamyen, Daraa أوغاريت الصنمين حوران مظاهرات جمعة الله اكبر
November 5th, 2011, 3:27 am
Mango said:
معهد أبحاث: أمريكا لا تزال الأولى في العالم من حيث الإنفاق العسكري
ستوكهولم :د ب أ
أعلن معهد ستوكهولم الدولي لأبحاث السلام اليوم أن الولايات المتحدة لا تزال تتصدر قائمة دول العالم من حيث الإنفاق العسكري خلال عام 2010، حيث أنها تنفق أكثر من ست مرات ما تنفقه الصين التي تحتل المرتبة الثانية.
وأوضح المعهد أن الإنفاق العسكري العالمي خلال العام الماضي بلغ في الإجمالي 1.6تريليون دولار أمريكي بزيادة 1.3% مقارنة بعام 2009.ووفقا لتقديرات المعهد، فإن الإنفاق العسكري الأمريكي خلال عام 2010 بلغ 43% من الإنفاق العالمي، بقيمة 698 مليار دولار.
وذكر المعهد أن نسبة إنفاق الصين قدرت بنحو 7% من إجمالي الإنفاق العسكري العالمي بقيمة بلغت نحو 112 مليار دولار في حين بلغت نسبة إنفاق فرنسا وبريطانيا وروسيا تقريبا نحو 4% من الإنفاق العالمي.وكانت اليابان وألمانيا والسعودية والهند وإيطاليا أيضا من بين أكبر عشر دول من حيث الإنفاق العسكري عالميا.
وكان المعهد أعلن في وقت سابق أن الولايات المتحدة وروسيا تهيمنان سويا على نحو نصف مبيعات الأسلحة في العالم ما بين عامي 2006 و2010.
ووفقا لقاعدة البيانات العسكرية للمعهد فإن الولايات المتحدة استحوذت على نسبة 30% من صادرات الأسلحة على مستوى العالم خلال هذه الفترة، حيث أبرمت صفقات بيع أسلحة لنحو 75 دولة. وكانت كوريا الجنوبية وأستراليا والإمارات العربية المتحدة أكبر ثلاث دول مستوردة للأسلحة الأمريكية.
وبلغت نسبة مبيعات روسيا من الأسلحة 23%، وكانت المورد الرئيسي للهند والصين، وهما أكبر دولتين على مستوى العالم من حيث استيراد الأسلحة بين عامي 2006 و2010.
وسجل إجمالي مبيعات الأسلحة لأكبر 100 شركة على مستوى العالم في هذا المجال ما يقدر ب400 مليار دولار خلال عام 2009.
وكانت لوكهيد مارتن ومقرها الولايات المتحدة هي أكبر شركة لبيع أسلحة في العالم، تليها “بي ايه إي سيستمز” البريطانية. ومن بين الشركات ال100 الأكبر هناك 45 شركة أمريكية، و33 في غرب أوروبا، بينما ذهبت معظم النسبة الباقية إلى شركات في روسيا واليابان وإسرائيل والهند وكوريا الجنوبية. ولم تشمل هذه التقديرات العملاق الآسيوي الصين.
وأوضح المعهد في تقريره السنوي أنه كان هناك 15 صراعا كبيرا مسلحا في 2010، مقابل 13 في 2009.
وسجل المعهد وجود 52 عملية لقوات حفظ السلام في أنحاء العالم خلال 2010، وهو أقل عدد لمثل هذه العمليات منذ عام 2002. وأشار إلى أن العسكريين يشكلون تقريبا تسعة لكل عشرة من الموظفين العاملين في مهمات حفظ السلام والبالغ عددهم 260 ألف موظف.
وأفاد المعهد بأن قوة المساعدة الأمنية الدولية “ايساف” التي يقودها حلف شمال الأطلسي “ناتو” في أفغانستان كانت أكبر قوة عسكرية منفردة متعددة الجنسيات في العالم حيث بلغ عدد جنودها 131 ألف جندي، بزيادة 57% مقابل 2009.
ووفقا للتقرير السنوي، فإن 8 دول تحتفظ تقريبا بخمسة آلاف سلاح نووي نشط في أوائل عام 2011، منها نحو 2000 وضعت على مستوى عال من الاستعداد.
وقال معهد ستوكهولم الدولي لأبحاث السلام إنه بالرغم من اتفاق روسيا والولايات المتحدة العام الماضي على خفض أسلحتهم الاستراتيجية النووية، إلا أنه لا تزال القوتان النوويتان الرئيسيتان تحدثان من أنظمتهما للأسلحة النووية، وهو ما يشير إلى أن الترسانات النووية لن تزول على ما يبدو في “المستقبل المنظور”. وأشار إلى أن الهند وباكستان لا تزالان تطوران صواريخ باليستية جديدة وأخرى عابرة.
وخلال عام 2010، لم يحدث تقدم يذكر في تسوية الخلاف بشأن برامج الأبحاث النووية في كل من كوريا الشمالية وإيران.يذكر أن البرلمان السويدي أسس معهد ستوكهولم الدولي لأبحاث السلام عام 1966.
November 5th, 2011, 3:34 am
Revlon said:
SNC leadership should watch this video and draw their own conclusions.
The SNC’s attitude twords the People is not very far from the regime’s; Both advance their agendas and own judgement over the amply expressed will of the people and the sanctity of human life.
The regime has ignored the people’s desire for changing the system, while the SNC has insisted on their “peaceful mantra” which has meant yes to more blood shed and No to saving lives..
4 11 2011
Kelly, Idlib أوغاريت كللي إدلب مظاهرات جمعة الله اكبر اطلاق نار على المتظاهرين السلميين
November 5th, 2011, 3:44 am
Mango said:
to the modorater !
in 307 article :
You didn’t kill Hafez al-Assad when you all had the chance
Does this site to promote and disseminate a culture of the killing?
November 5th, 2011, 3:54 am
Revlon said:
Defector soldier Hakim Hayel AlAjaj fell martyr after he shot an killed the chief of staff of Asad army brigade No. 121, along with 4 of his soldiers.
04/11/2011
http://www.facebook.com/OmawiLive?sk=wall
AlFatiha upon his soul,
May God bless his family with solace and empower them with patience.
أموي مباشر – Omawi Live
أموي مباشر سوريا #syria •◄ -مصادر – دمشق- 0 استشهاد الجندي الـْـْمنشق حكيم هايل العجاج في بلدة كناكر بعد ان قتل العقيد راتب الغانم رئيس اركان اللواء 121 واربعة جنود… شهيد الحرية..
6 hours ago
November 5th, 2011, 4:05 am
Revlon said:
Brother of Medical Student, Ms Yaman AlQadri who was arrested yesterday by regime forces:
I am torn between blaming Yaman for breaking my and her parents hearts, and feeling proud for how she bravely stood up for what she believed in!
She refused her parents pleas to leave Syria and join them in KSA!
We are all with you, my heart and my heroine sister!
شقيق يمان القادري … طالبة الطب التي اعتقلت امس
05/11/2011
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=273478346024929&set=a.237085119664252.58257.234091963296901&type=1
تنسيقية منطقة مصياف
أنا جالس في غرفة جلوس أحد أصدقائنا في الرياض .. أنظر إلى أبي الذي ضاقت به الغرفة من الحزن و البكاء على أختي يمان .. وأفكر بطريقة لإخبار والدتي التي ما زالت في الدوام .. وإنظر إلى نفسي وأقول كلو منك يا يمان .. أضع الحق عليها لأننا طلبنا منها أن تترك الجامعة وتعود إلينا وتجلس مع أهلها في أمان وسلام .. وأضع الحق عليها أيضا لأنها السبب في تحطيم قلب أهلها
ولكن هناك في مكان ما من قلبي يقول ويفتخر ويحيي “يمان إختي الحرة البطلة ” كان قلبي يتقطع لأن أهلي لم يسمحوا لي بالنزول إلى سوريا لأشارك في الثورة مع كل الشباب الذين رفعوا رأسنا .. ولكن كنت أرفع راسي وأفتخر وأقول لأصحابي إن أختي في سوريا إختي بطلة إختي حرة
كلنا معك يا قلبي يا إختي يا حرة يا بطلة
November 5th, 2011, 4:19 am
Mina said:
US wars veterans clash with police in Oakland:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/04/occupy-oakland-second-veteran-injured
November 5th, 2011, 4:44 am
Syria no kandahar said:
The mayor of new York stated he is fine with wall street protests but he will not allow peeing in public.yet the US government is asking the peaceful Syrian protesters not to give up their weapons!!
November 5th, 2011, 4:56 am
annie said:
229. SYRIAN HAMSTER great statement and you DID get a few thumbs down; I fb-ed you. But does not look like anyone bothered to comment. Their loss.
November 5th, 2011, 5:01 am
Mohamed Kanj said:
@347 – REVLON – thanx for the post of the rally in Darra sanamein. Another successful friday for you and ur extremist jihad friends wasnt it? 200-500 people in that rally wasnt their? Ive counted every single rally from yesterday, and in total they would add up to 5000-8000 extremists in all of Syria. ALLAH WOU AKBAR. Just wait till next month and January. You better ringer Qatar and Saudi aid groups to start supplying you and ur friends with woolen jumpers 🙂 ALLAH WOU AKBAR FOR A SYRIA FREE OF EXTREMISTS AND RODENTS LIKE URELF
November 5th, 2011, 5:59 am
Mina said:
#312
This analysis by Alastair Crooke rings like a voice in the desert. It is just too obvious though! Unleashing Gulf Salafis on the Shiis, as it has been done in Pakistan and Iraq, just to counter the Shii propaganda. As if there were no other tools than suicide bombings in crowds to counter propaganda.
November 5th, 2011, 6:09 am
Revlon said:
356. Dear Mohamed Kanj,
You said: “@347 – REVLON – thanx for the post of the rally in Darra sanamein. Another successful friday for you and ur extremist jihad friends wasnt it? 200-500 people in that rally wasnt their? Ive counted every single rally from yesterday, and in total they would add up to 5000-8000 extremists in all of Syria.”
Notwisthstanding your alleged count, and small in number and unarmed as they are, they have managed to hold their ground in the face of Jr’s entire army, security forces, and thugs for the last 8 months.
Your observation serves as a testement to the demonstrators courage as it does to the regime’s utter incompetence!
November 5th, 2011, 6:59 am
Revlon said:
The SNC is moving in the right direction.
They have asked the AL to
– do their part by withdrawing Ambassadors from Damascus,
and breaking ties with the regime.
– refer the case back to the security council.
__________________________________________________________________
Syrian National Council المجلس الوطني السوري
إعلام و صحافة دولية
http://www.facebook.com/TheSyrianNationalCouncil
05/11/2011
الأخبار – عربي – مطالب بالتدويل وتشكيك فرنسي بدمشق
http://www.aljazeera.net
دعا المجلس الوطني السوري المعارض إلى إرسال الملف السوري لمجلس الأمن الدولي وذلك بعد سقوط قتلى وجرحى في جمعة “الله أكبر”. وشككت فرنسا في صدق نية النظام السوري بتنفيذ بنود الورقة العربية التي نصت على سحب الآليات العسكرية ووقف العنف وبدء الحوار…
15 minutes ago
__________________________________________________________________
إثر توالي القتل في “جمعة الله أكبر”
مطالب بالتدويل وتشكيك فرنسي بدمشق
الجمعة 8/12/1432 هـ – الموافق 4/11/2011 م (آخر تحديث) الساعة 20:57 (مكة المكرمة)، 17:57 (غرينتش)
http://www.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/3367C0FB-871E-4528-BBCF-255BDAB88CC2.htm?GoogleStatID=20
دعا المجلس الوطني السوري المعارض إلى إرسال الملف السوري إلى مجلس الأمن الدولي وذلك بعد سقوط قتلى وجرحى في جمعة “الله أكبر”. وشككت فرنسا في صدق نوايا النظام السوري في تنفيذ بنود الورقة العربية، كما حذرت الولايات المتحدة دمشق من ازدياد عزلتها الدولية.
وتعليقا على الالتزام بمبادرة الجامعة العربية في سوريا، قال رئيس المجلس الوطني السوري برهان غليون في حديث للجزيرة إن على الجامعة العودة إلى تطبيق إجراءات مؤثرة على النظام السوري كانت تفكر فيها سابقا ومنها سحب السفراء وتجميد عضويته في الجامعة وإرسال الملف السوري إلى مجلس الأمن.
وتنص الورقة العربية على سحب الآليات العسكرية ووقف العنف والحوار مع المعارضة خلال أسبوعين.
وكان وفد من المجلس الوطني قد أبلغ الأمين العام للجامعة العربية نبيل العربي خلال لقائهم به أمس بالقاهرة “تخوفهم من عدم مصداقية النظام في تنفيذ وعوده”.
وقال عضو الوفد سمير النشار إن المجلس لم يتحدث في اللقاء عن حوار ولكن عرض “الدخول في مفاوضات لانتقال السلطة من نظام استبدادي إلى نظام ديمقراطي”، وطالب بتنحي بشار الأسد عن السلطة.
برهان غليون: على الجامعة إرسال
الملف السوري إلى مجلس الأمن (الجزيرة)
“مجرم” وتسليح
ومن جهته قال المفوض السياسي للحركة الشعبية للتغيير في سوريا وائل الحافظ في حديث للجزيرة من باريس إن نظام الأسد “مجرم وقاتل” ومعروف بكذبه وخداعه داعيا الجامعة العربية إلى اختصار الجهد وحقن دماء السوريين برفع القضية مباشرة إلى مجلس الأمن الدولي وتأمين الحماية للشعب السوري.
وشدد الحافظ على أنه لا يدعو إلى تدخل دولي على الطريقة الليبية رافضا مساعدة حلف الناتو بل يحث على تسليح الجيش السوري الحر وهو مجموعات عسكرية انشقت عن الجيش الحكومي وأعلنت رفضها لنظام الأسد.
أما السفير وجيه حنفي، الأمين العام المساعد للجامعة العربية ومدير مكتب الأمين العام للجامعة العربية فقال إن الأمانة العامة للجامعة واللجنة الوزارية العربية وضعت آلية لمراقبة التزام سوريا بالمبادرة العربية وسترسل لهذه الغاية قريبا بعثة إلى دمشق.
November 5th, 2011, 7:07 am
Mina said:
FB was mapping people’s friends and networks all other the world (the dream of any Mormon, FBI, or CIA op!) but now they’ve started to identify the people on the pictures.
http://www.lemonde.fr/technologies/article/2011/11/04/l-allemagne-s-attaque-aux-exces-de-facebook_1599214_651865.html
Notice how the “journalist” tries to take the defense of FB, Google etc in their worde “Big Brother” deviance.
November 5th, 2011, 7:16 am
Revlon said:
The SNC is showing more self belief.
They are to be commended for demonstrating a proactive leadership.
November 5th, 2011, 7:27 am
Syria no kandahar said:
Revlon
القرد بعين أمو غزال
November 5th, 2011, 7:43 am
Syria no kandahar said:
Revlon and his MB gangs love for minorities :
November 5th, 2011, 7:51 am
Ales said:
AL, foreign countries and SNC can do little except media propaganda and support of extremist, if more and more syrians people are supporting reforms. Looks like people like reforms more than alternatives leading to war, death, poverty and submission to foreigners.
And at the end, extremism will be reduced too, because it is becoming more and more violent…just like in the 80’s, we know how that had ended.
The real question now is, is AL alternative genuine step to help or just a maneuver? Syria government is probably suspicious, but on same time, it has to keep supporting peaceful resolution. AL initiative has given a hope for resolution and this has to be commended. Killing at this time is definitely not in interest of government or any Syrian citizen.
November 5th, 2011, 8:04 am
Mina said:
Today in Haaretz, Shimon Peres is blackmailing the West into attacking Iran with a simple “you said you support us, so now you have to prove it”. No matter there is a coming election in Iran, that there is already some splits in the higher spheres, it is just too tempting for them to use the “window of opportunity” constituted by Obama’s weakness because of the coming elections. A vacuum so to say.
http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/peres-i-believe-israel-world-approaching-military-option-on-iran-nuclear-threat-1.393801
November 5th, 2011, 8:13 am
bronco said:
The magic wand of the AL is not fast enough.
It took 8 months to create a chaos and and now it is expected than in two days it will be fixed?
Bashar Al Assad has no choice than to fulfill his promises.
The Al has no choice than to ensure a peaceful transition for the sake of the region and their own pride.
The die hard opposition has no choice than to create more chaos
The local moderate opposition has not choices than to complain of their impotence
The SNC has no choice than to try to get Arab support
The FSA has no choice than to continue killing soldiers to ‘protect’ the “peaceful” protectors.
They are all cornered by the stalemate.
What and Who would break that deadlock? We have 15 days to reassess the situation
November 5th, 2011, 9:01 am
Tara said:
“a classified 2008 cable from the then-US chargé d’affaires to Damascus, released by Wikileaks this year, names ( Fawaz al Akhras) as one of the President’s four key “money-men” around the world, recommending him as a figure Washington should “go after” to pressure the regime. “Contacts in the banking sector have commented on the large amount of funds that have begun to move recently through his accounts,” wrote Michael H Corbin. “A long-time resident of London, he is suspected of being another avenue used by Asad [sic] to stash funds abroad.”
Fawaz al Akhrass and his family’s bank accounts should be investigated and exposed. If true, their assets should be frozen….
I truly hope that Asmaa and her family are innocent.
November 5th, 2011, 9:12 am
Revlon said:
362. Dear Syria no kandahar,
“Revlon
القرد بعين أمو غزال
Allah Ykhalleelak yaha
November 5th, 2011, 9:19 am
Amir in Tel Aviv said:
If you really want to know what Arab cruelty means, watch CNN’s ‘Death in the Desert’. http://edition.cnn.com/2011/11/02/world/meast/egypt-refugees/index.html
.
November 5th, 2011, 9:31 am
Tara said:
Hot of the press. AL first sign of growing impatient with the Syrian regime
Peace deal failure would be “catastrophic” for Syria
November 5, 2011
http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=329754
Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi warned on Saturday that the failure of a deal brokered by his organization to end violence in Syria would be “catastrophic” for the country and region.
“The failure of the Arab solution will have catastrophic consequences for the situation in Syria and the region,” he said in a statement, while calling for an immediate end to the bloodshed.
The statement was issued after Arabi met Burhan Ghalioun, the Paris-based leader of the dissident Syrian National Council.
It also came after news that seven more people died in clashes on Saturday.
Arabi expressed his “deep regret and extreme concern at the continuation of violence in different regions of Syria, warning of the dangers of not achieving progress in implementing the Arab plan.”
He added that the Arab League wanted to avoid such an outcome.
Arabi “called on the Syrian government to take immediate measures to implement the Arab plan, to which it committed itself,” the statement said.
………
On Friday, Syrian troops killed at least 23 people when demonstrators took to the streets denouncing “despots and tyrants,” ….
-AFP/NOW Lebanon
November 5th, 2011, 9:31 am
Revlon said:
Syrian National Council المجلس الوطني السوري
05/11/2001
وفد المجلس الوطني السوري يلتقي الأمين العام للجامعة لبحث المستجدات
http://www.facebook.com/TheSyrianNationalCouncil
أكد أمين عام جامعة الدول العربية نبيل العربي أن الجامعة ستصدر بياناً اليوم يعبر عن إدانتها لأعمال القتل التي قام بها النظام السوري بحق المدنببن والمتظاهرين على مدى يومين من توقيعه على نص المبادرة العربية والتي أودت بحياة نحو ستين مواطنا سوريا حتى الآن.
Al secretary to SNC delegation: A communique is due today codemning the regimes intransigent ‘killing of civilians in spite of sighned agreement.
وأكد العربي لدى استقباله وفدا من المجلس الوطني السوري أنه في حال استمرار النظام في عمليات قتل المدنيين قإنه ستتم الدعوة لعقد اجتماع لمجلس الجامعة دون انتظار فترة الأسبوعين التي نصت عليها المبادرة لبدء الحوار.
He said: should killing continues the AL council shall convene without the need for the grace period to expire.
ووفقا لمصادر تابعت مجريات الاجتماع فإن غالبية الدول العربية في حال موافقتها سيكون في وسعها تجميد عضوية النظام في الجامعة وفرض عقوبات اقتصادية ودبلوماسية عليه، كما تشير المصادر إلى أن كلا من روسيا والصين مستعدتان للضغط على النظام إلا أن لديها خشية من تدخل عسكري يقوده الناتو في سورية.
Sources: If the majority of Arab governments reach a concensus they have the power to impose economic and diplomatic sanctions.
وفد أكد وفد المجلس الوطني أن دفاع السوريين عن أنفسهم مشروع في مواجهة الحملة الدموية للنظام وأجهزته وميليشياته، كما أن الجيش الحر والضباط والجنود الأحرار الذين انحازوا للثورة يتولون الدفاع عن المدنيين والمتظاهرين، وقد تم الإشارة إلى قيام النظام باعتقال نحو 3 آلاف مدني خلال يومين.
SNC delegation stressed that Syrians have the right to self defense, and that the Free Syrian Army and the Free Soldiers Movement who have sided with the revolution have taken the responsibility to defend civilians.
They said that 3000 civilians have been arrested in two days since the regime signed the agreement.
about an hour ago
November 5th, 2011, 9:34 am
Revlon said:
SNC president plans to address the nation for the first time.
The address comes on the occasion of Eid AlAdha.
It shall include messages to the revolutionaries, the Free Syrian Army and other free soldiers, the silent majority, the neighbouring states, and the international community.
It will communicate the SNC’s vision for future Syria.
It will be aired on AlJazeera channel at 20:00 hr Damascus time.
Syrian National Council المجلس الوطني السوري
هام وعاجل ::
سيلقي الدكتور برهان غليون، رئيس المجلس الوطني السوري، كلمة يخاطب فيها الشعب السوري. تأتي هذه الكلمة لرئيس المجلس بمناسبة عيد الأضحى المبارك، وستتضمن رسائل للثوار والمنشقين عن الجيش والنظام والأغلبية الصامتة ودول الجوار والمجتمع الدولي. كما ستتضمن رؤية المجلس الوطني لمستقبل سورية.
ستبث الكلمة الليلة على قناة الجزيرة الساعة الثامنة ليلاً بتوقيت دمشق وسيتم التعليق عليها في حصاد اليوم. كما ستبث مقاطع من الكلمة على قناة العربية بالتوقيت نفسه.
3 hours ago
November 5th, 2011, 9:44 am
Tara said:
Revlon@372
SNC president plan to address the Syrian people is very smart move, a step ex-president of Syria Bashar al Assad neglected to do during 8 months of mayhem. I am glad that Bourhan Ghalioun is quickly gaining the experience to lead.
November 5th, 2011, 9:51 am
majedkhaldoun said:
Two weeks is long long wait, another 400 martyr will be dead, AL has a moral responsibility to work through Eid Al Adhha,since people are dying,
Bashar will pray in Eid, it will be his last,how can he pray and continue the killing?
The opposition does not want chaos,Burhan Ghalioun and Basma Qudhmani both welcomed AL initiative, and so did Haytham Maleh,for those who claimed that SNC did not accept AL initiative are proven wrong.
Al Arabi said today that the failure of the AL initiative will be catastrophic.
Bashar has to leave if he wants to have any respect left for him,The offer by the interior minister ,Sha33ar, is silly.
After the Eid the situation will be very serious,and November will be the decisive month.
November 5th, 2011, 10:13 am
majedkhaldoun said:
The regime supporters are realizing that it is getting hopeless for them.they see the end soon.
November 5th, 2011, 10:16 am
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
One can wonder endlessly in empty space, thinking what Gahlioun is going to address the Syrian with, let me guess, we failed, sorry for sending 18,000 Syrians to jail, they are being tortured but a good number of them still alive and healing, don’t worry about the 4,000 dead, get pregnant and replace them, there will be 40,000 more dead before the next year ends, this is a long struggle to hand Syria out to Turkey and Bedouin to be their source of rent-a-whore like Lebanon now is. I don’t know where I am going to get the money after we remove the Dictator out to run Syria, all I got is 20 million and already spent half of it in casinos, never gave the majority Moslem Brotherhood a dime. I promise you will not be the next President of Syria, will not even run, and because I am sure the only votes from Syrian I will get are the 30 fake ones. Don’t worry Syrians, in the end I can play desperate and invite NATO to finish off Syria just as they did Iraq, Afghanistan, and looted Libya, Islamic Sharia Law will be instituted, this is a promise. The majoussy should not be feared, they will all be slaughtered when NATO starts the Bombing of Syria, we have, not thousands, but hundreds of spotter who will mark their home for NATO to blow them up as WMD hiding places. What can I say more, you Syrians are going to be eventually in good NATO, Turkmen and Bedouin hands. Look for the dim future, trust me, my father born in Syria just for this day that I can deliver it all to Syria enemies, it is just how life works.
November 5th, 2011, 10:45 am
Ghat Al Bird said:
PSYCHOPATHIC ZIONISM.
“ZIONISM…THE PATHOLOGICAL MINDSET OF TERRORISM AND ETHNIC CLEANSING”
http://www.alanhart.net/
November 5th, 2011, 10:46 am
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
@MAJD
Sane and realists, well informed people whose feet on solid ground, not hallucinating on the smell of Qatary Dollars see the end of 40,000 Syrians that is all, it is going to end with a bang like Hama. And that would be the lucky outcome for Syria. The unlucky one is that foreigners manage to launch a Civil War in Syria, but that will be unlucky to all. I mean SNP will just have a blast with this lawless outcome in Syria, all the dreams of the past 33 years will come to our hand in real form. The possibility of a Civil War in Syria will assure us that mayhem will engulf all neighbor countries and finally manage to have A GREATER SYRIA as big as Saadeh SSNPS envisioned. Not the small one SNP works for. We even get to emulate Muawya march on Arabia and be as merciful with the Bedouin as he was.
November 5th, 2011, 10:58 am
Mina said:
So let’s say tomorrow all the troops go home for the eid, and the remote controled protesters will go, burn and loot every public building (as it happened in Hama in April). Then the rest of the eid holiday will be spent at home by terrified people, and the AL+West will watch the scene on TV with a big smile?
Will Revlon, Tara and Hamster allow the firemen to go out and extinguish the flames in the public buildings? Or do you advise your “free troops” to shoot at them because they will be defending “symbols of the state”?
November 5th, 2011, 11:07 am
Revlon said:
The regime has committed a massacre against civilians in Baba Amr, Homs today.
The video shows victims murdered or wounded by nail bombs!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ih4K8Hfm_jk&feature=player_embedded
شام – حمص – باباعمرو – مجزرة اليوم 5-11-2011
November 5th, 2011, 11:10 am
bronco said:
#379 Mina
Don’t worry, they will say that the people who are looting and burning are government security agents disguised as criminals, and they do that just to prove than the army presence is necessary. It’s an old trick…
They have all the responses/accusations to avoid been responsible/accused. But they have no solution to propose other than Bashar’s removal (the US encourages it) as if this is going to change something in the chaos the country has reached.
There will be a military coup if the AL initiative fails. Curfew and emergency rule, just like Egypt. They called for it, they’ll get it.
November 5th, 2011, 11:22 am
irritated said:
#375 Majedalkhaldoon
“they see the end soon.”
Sorry, I don’t. I see yours
November 5th, 2011, 11:23 am
jad said:
Dear Louai,
Citizens are working in Homs, they will take back their neighbourhoods from the terrorists:
HNN| شـبكة أخـبار حمص
من نتائج اجتماع الوجهاء و مشايخ الأحياء و الريف بحمص
من أحياء الزهــــراء و العباسية و الخالـدية و جـب الجندلي
و البياضة و غيرهم مع المحافظ الذي شرح للمجتمعين
أبعاد المؤامرة و ضرورة العمل على وأد الفتنة و مسؤولية
الجميع في ذلك …
الشيخ حوري عثمان خطيب وامام جامع الفردوس في
حي الانشاءات أبدى الرفض القطعي للمعارضة
الخارجية الذين اسماهم بالحثالة و رفض استهــداف
المواطنين الآمنين و طالب بإعادة الثقة بين المواطنين….
و وجه الشيخ دعوة للمسلحين لتسليم أنفسهم
و بالاستفادة من العفو الذي اعلنت عنه الدولة وقال :
من لا يؤمن بتسليم السلاح سيكون له القانون بالمرصاد.
تم الاتفاق على تشكيل لجــان الأحياء الشعبية
تمثل الشارع بشكل حقيقي و سيكون لها دور في معالجة القضايا
الأمنية بحيث إذا اعتقل أحد المواطنين تقوم بالتواصل مع
الجهات الأمنية لتعرف أسباب الاعتقال و بالتالي لا يقوم
ذووه باختطاف أحد للمقايضة به أو عندما يتم القبض على
أحد المسلحين يتم تسليمه للجهات الأمنية …
و هذه اللجان تكون تكون ممثل حقيقي للشارع تنقل
مطالبهم لدى المسؤولين و تمثل المسؤولين في تواصلها
مع مطالب المواطنين….
كما تقوم اللجان بتوزرع المواد التوينية لبعض
المناطق كي لا يتم استغلال هذا الأمر من الاعلام الخارجي…
هذه اللجنان تحتلف عن اللجان التي شكلت من قبل و التي كانت نظرية
لا تعبر عن الشارع بشكل حقيقي …
Sham fm — in Homs, Syria.
November 5th, 2011, 11:27 am
jad said:
-The release of 553 detainees
-Terrorist groups attacked two trucks loaded with gasoline on the highway which lead to closing the highway
HNN| شـبكة أخـبار حمص
إخلاء سبيل 553 من الموقوفين الذين تورطوا
بالأحداث الأخيرة و لم تتلطخ أيديهم بالدماء
مسحلون يطلقون النار على صهريجين محملين
بمادة البنزين على طريق عام حمص السلمية
الأمر الذي أدى لتدفق البنزين على الأرض مما
أوقف حركة السير
November 5th, 2011, 11:33 am
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
Libya – The flag of NATO/US buddies Al Qaeda flies over the courthouse of Benghazi this morning:
November 5th, 2011, 11:36 am
bronco said:
Tara
“SNC president plan to address the Syrian people”
After having being snubbed by all Arab countries, except Polygamist Libya, that then changed their mind about the Syrian Embassy, the Turkish-US-France sponsored SNC is playing one of its last card.
If Borghan Ghalioun is able to convince the Syrians in Syria that, despite the islamic color of the SNC, he will make sure that only a lightweight Sharia-based democracy is instated (but that polygamy and cutting hands will NOT be reinstated), maybe he will get a positive response, otherwise Ghalioun will resign to allow some ‘moderate AKP-like’ islamist to take over the SNC for the next round.
I am sure he has a lot to say about the future of Syria under the control of the US, Turkey and France and willing foreign countries.
November 5th, 2011, 11:40 am
jad said:
Official Source: Statements of US Department of State Spokesperson Prove US Policies in Support of Killing and Financing Armed Group
DAMASCUS, (SANA) _An official source at the Ministry of Foreign and Expatriates Affairs stated that the US administration disclosed again its blatant interference in Syria’s internal affairs, and its policy which supports killing, in addition to its funding of the terrorist groups in Syria.
The evidence on that is the statement of US Department of State spokesperson, Victoria Nuland which she made on 04/11/2011 in which she said that she doesn’t advice the terrorists to turn themselves in to the Syrian authorities and this statement came in a response to the general amnesty decision taken by the Syrian Government which includes whoever hands his illegal weapon to the Syrian authorities, the source added.
The source said that the Syrian Government condemns these irresponsible statements which only aim at inciting sedition, supporting the acts of killing and the terrorism practiced by the armed groups against the Syrian citizens.
The Syrian Government calls on the international community to stand against these policies which contradict with the provisions of the international law and the UN Security Council’s resolutions related to combating terrorism and financing it, the source added.
Earlier on Friday, Nuland advised the gunmen in Syria not to hand their weapons to the Syrian authorities in a response to the amnesty offer by the Ministry of Interior.
http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/11/05/379999.htm
November 5th, 2011, 11:40 am
jad said:
Bronco,
-“If Borghan Ghalioun is able to convince the Syrians in Syria”
Bourhanmission is to convince the WEST not the SYRIANS of specific points they asked him to do, a clear stands on coupld issues and that what he is going to deliver
-“Ghalioun will resign to allow some ‘moderate AKP-like’ islamist to take over the SNC for the next round.”
He already finished one month of his 3 month term, he is leaving either way, he is just a better face than the other Islamists in the mighty SNC.
-After his mighty speech the LCC will declare that they want the SNC to be their representative and the only one out of this theatrical show will be the domestic oppositions, there is already a plan to shut the domestic opposition up in anyway possible because they are the only issue before declaring the SNC as ‘THE’ only opposition.
November 5th, 2011, 11:50 am
Syrian Nationalist Party said:
‘Labbaik. Allah humma labbaik oh rising Morning Sun, Al Adha ( the Slaughter fest) is a sign of the Dawn of New Day. To you blood sacrifices will be made by the multitude,’Labbaik. Allah humma labbaik.
November 5th, 2011, 11:51 am
jad said:
Attacking the Syrian Army by the terrorists:
هؤلاء هم جنود الجيش العربي السوري في ادلب
http://youtu.be/nFGOw2nvyrc
November 5th, 2011, 11:54 am
Tara said:
Bronco
I am not following. Why is the mistrust? Ghalioun is SECULAR, well before the start of the Syrian revolution. Why would he want the Shariaa law?
Also, why the assumption that Syria future will be controlled by the US, France, and Turkey. On what ground are you accusing the SNC of being either Islamists or traitors?
Bashar is a man, a mortal man. He is not Syria and Syria is not Bashar.
Bronco, the real question I have for you is: Can you accept that one can be secular and extremely patriot but at the same time wants to topple Bashar?
November 5th, 2011, 12:03 pm
Revlon said:
Deception and more regime deception!
Sources: Workers in Factories of the Ministry of Defense in Sayyedah Zeinab, Damascus will continue to work full time through the holdiay.
They are under time pressure to deliver a large order of blue uniforms with Anti-Riot-Police logo, to be soon used by Asad army and security forces!
http://www.facebook.com/Youth.Syria.Freedom
05/11/2011
حركة سوريا شباب من أجل الحرية Youth Syria For Freedom
أموي مباشر سوريا #syria •◄ غرفة سورية العدل و الـْـْحرية :: حرية عدالة // خبر عاجل:معامل الدفاع في السيدة زينب البحدلية تستمر بالعمل أيام العيد بسبب طلبية كبيرة من البدلات بلون أزرق كحلي لتوزع على عناصر الأمن والجيش على أنهم قوات حفظ النظام يرجى النشر
November 5th, 2011, 12:05 pm
jad said:
من يريد جر سوريا إلى مواجهة مع تركيا؟
داود رمال
في موازاة دخول الحل العربي للوضع السوري في مسار آليات التنفيذ العملية بعد موافقة القيادة السورية على الخطة العربية للحل، فإن حراكا دوليا ـ إقليميا من نوع آخر يشي بعدم وجود نيات غربية سليمة تجاه سوريا، بدليل العمل على استغلال المدى الايجابي الذي وصلت اليه التطورات، وفي الوقت نفسه، العمل على سيناريوهات مغايرة، ما يزيد الشكوك في صدقية النيات الغربية، وهل فعلا هناك من يريد الاستقرار لسوريا أم الخراب وصولا الى استنساخ النموذج الليبي الراهن حيث الثورة تتصارع مع الثورة، وأحيانا تبدو الثورة أكثر دموية من الديكتاتور كما حصل مع مقتل معمر القذافي والتشهير بجثته.
ويقول مصدر دبلوماسي عربي لـ«السفير» انه بعد صمت تركي امتد نحو شهر تجاه الاحداث في سوريا، «عادت وتيرة الانتقادات والحملات الاستفزازية لتطل برأسها مجددا وعلى لسان كبار المسؤولين الأتراك، علما ان مسار الحل العربي انطلق مع الموافقة السورية على خريطة الطريق التي اقترحتها الجامعة العربية واللجنة الوزارية العربية برئاسة قطر، والتي جرى التفاوض حول صيغتها النهائية مع الجانب السوري، وهذه العودة التركية لتصعيد اللهجة تجاه سوريا انما تنم عن توجه غربي، بدأت تتوضح معالمه يوما بعد آخر».
ويوضح المصدر «ان ثمة معلومات يجري التدقيق فيها وتفيد بأن تركيا بدأت عمليا تقديم مساعدات مالية وعسكرية ولوجستية للمعارضة السورية بتغطية من جهات خليجية وبطلب أميركي، حيث ترسل الاموال الخليجية الى تركيا التي تقوم بدورها بتوزيعها واستثمارها في بناء منظومة عسكرية وأمنية لأطياف المعارضة السورية على أراضيها».
ويضيف المصدر «ان تركيا بدأت عمليات تدريب للمعارضة السورية في معسكرات مخصصة لذلك على اراضيها، بالقرب من الحدود الجنوبية، تمهيدا لإنشاء منطقة عازلة داخل الاراضي السورية أيا كان حجمها ومساحتها، فالسيناريو الذي سيعتمد يبدأ بالتركيز المتواصل على مزاعم عن ارتكاب النظام السوري جرائم ضد الانسـانية، ويــترافق ذلك مع دعوات مكثفة للتدخل الاجنبي عبر فرض حماية جوية ومنطقة حظر جوي فوق سوريا».
ويكشف المصدر «ان الخطة الاساسية تقوم على توغل قوات تركية داخل الاراضي السورية قرب الحدود بين البلدين بهدف جر القيادة السورية الى اتخاذ قرار بإرسال وحدات من جيشها للتصدي لهذا الاعتداء على الاراضي السورية، ما يتيح لتركيا بالاستناد الى اتفاقية إنشاء الحلف الاطلسي، الاستنجاد بالحلف بحكم عضويتها فيه، وأحد بنود اتفاقية إنشائه تنص على التدخل إذا طلبت احدى الدول الاعضاء ذلك، وما نفي الحلف لذلك حاليا إلا عملية صرف للانظار عن هذا السيناريو».
ويشير المصدر الى انه «في موازاة ذلك تقوم المعارضة السورية باستهداف مواقع للجيش السوري والمخابرات العسكرية بالتزامن مع خروج تظاهرات تطالب بتدخل الحلف الاطلسي مستفيدة من بنود الاتفاق الذي أقر في الجامعة العربية لحل الازمة السورية والذي ينص على سحب الجيش من المدن ووقف العنف وإنهاء المظاهر المسلحة».
ويلفت المصدر الانتباه إلى أن «التوقعات حسب السيناريو المعتمد، ان تكون الحرب طويلة، ذلك أن ثمة اتفاقا أميركياً ـ تركياً بإفقاد سوريا أوراق قوتها الإقليمية وبالتالي موقعها ودورها كقوة إقليمية فاعلة في المنطقة».
وأكد المصدر أن ما يمكن أن يعوق سيناريو كهذا، هو أكثر من عنصر ولكن لا بد من الأخذ في الحسبان دور المستوى الأمني والعسكري التركي، الذي لا تزال قنواته مفتوحة حتى الآن، مع القيادة السورية، السياسية منها والعسكرية، وهناك شخصيات عربية ولبنانية التقت مسؤولين سوريين ولمست لهجة إيجابية في الحديث عن دور الجيش التركي وكذلك المخابرات التركية، حيث تزداد ملاحظات المستوى الأمني على أداء القيادة السياسية وتحديدا وزير الخارجية داود أوغلو».
وختم المصدر بالقول ان الأتراك سمعوا من الايرانيين ومن غيرهم كلاما واضحا بأن أية محاولة لاستدراج سوريا الى مواجهة عسكرية تحت عنوان إنساني أو أي عنوان كان، لن تقتصر على سوريا بل ستؤدي الى مواجهة إقليمية كبرى، وهو الأمر الذي لمّح اليه صراحة الأمين العام لـ«حزب الله» السيد حسن نصر الله في مقابلته الأخيرة مع «المنار».
http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=1997&ChannelId=47272&ArticleId=611&Author=%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%88%D8%AF%20%D8%B1%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%84
————————————
واشنطن تدير الصراع في سوريا: لا تسلّموا السلاح إلى السلطة!
خضع الاتفاق بين سوريا والجامعة العربية أمس لأول اختبار عملي على الأرض، حيث خرجت تظاهرات شعبية في عدد من المدن السورية، انتهت بحسب نشطاء إلى مقتل 17 شخصا، فيما نفت السلطات السورية سقوط أي قتلى. وفي الوقت الذي أعلنت فيه وزارة الداخلية السورية العفو عن كل من يسلم سلاحا خلال مهلة أسبوع تبدأ من اليوم، سارعت واشنطن إلى حث المسلحين على عدم القيام بذلك، متذرعة بالقلق على سلامتهم، في موقف يثير الاستغراب ويوحي بأن أميركا تدير بشكل مباشر الصراع المسلح في سوريا.
من جهته أكد نائب الأمين العام لجامعة الدول العربية أحمد بن حلي، في مقابلة مع قناة «العربية»، أن «الحل الأساسي يجب أن يكون نابعا من الأطراف السورية»، موضحا أن «الهدف من المبادرة العربية مساندة الحل السوري». وأضاف «إن الاحتضان العربي لملف الأزمة السورية هو لتشجيع ودعم جميع الأطراف السورية، حكومة ومعارضة بكل أطيافها، للوصول إلى حل سلمي».
وفي حين أعرب وزير الخارجية المصري محمد عمرو عن أمله في حل الأزمة السورية في إطار سوري ـ عربي ومن دون تدخل أجنبي، معتبرا أن ذلك، في حال تحققه، سيكون نصرا كبيرا للعالم العربي وللجامعة العربية، شككت باريس في صدق النظام السوري في تنفيذ خطة الجامعة وذلك بسبب «استمرار القمع الدامي».
http://www.assafir.com/Article.aspx?EditionId=1997&articleId=656&ChannelId=47270
November 5th, 2011, 12:05 pm
bronco said:
Jad
I doubt the LCC, the FSA and,the SNC will ever agree on a common program as they have totally different views of how to deal with the situation. Everyone sings his own song( More demonstrations, more killings, more observers)
As long as all Arab countries ( except Libya) continue ignoring the SNC, it won’t have any credibility.
The Syrian government has shown an incredible unity and determination and has offered a clear roadmap to democracy ( Ignored by the media) while the opposition has shown disunity, calls for void and chaos ( Idealized by the media)
November 5th, 2011, 12:06 pm
ann said:
Syria releases 553 prisoners ahead of Muslim Eid al-Adha – 2011-11-05
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-11/05/c_131231264.htm
DAMASCUS, Nov. 5 (Xinhua) — The Syrian government released Saturday a total of 553 prisoners arrested during the seven-month- long unrest on the occasion of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, the state-run TV reported.
The released prisoners did not commit homicide crimes, the TV said, adding that another 119 detainees have been recently released.
Activists said that about 15,000 people have been detained during the unrest in Syria.
The release of those arrested during the unrest topped the demands of protesters and was part of a deal concluded lately between the Syrian government and the Arab League (AL) ministerial committee to bring the Syrian crisis to a close.
Still the government has not announced when the other prisoners will be set free.
The AL plan was endorsed on Nov. 2, calling for ending violence and withdrawing military vehicles from Syrian streets, in addition to releasing detainees and holding a dialogue between the Syrian authorities and the opposition.
Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of Sacrifice, is one of the most important feasts on the Muslim calendar. Releasing prisoners during national holidays is common in Syria.
Since taking office in July 2000, Syrian President Bashar al- Assad has ordered to release hundreds of political detainees.
November 5th, 2011, 12:18 pm
Tara said:
Releasing 553 activists when 2000 activists were arrested 2 days earlier means nothing except that the regime is not genuine in delivering on its promises to the AL.
November 5th, 2011, 12:23 pm
ann said:
Sole Military Super-Bloc: NATO Issues Daily Reprieves To The World
2011-11-04
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=27482
On October 31 North Atlantic Treaty Organization chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen arrived in the Libyan capital of Tripoli at the end of seven full months of the military bloc’s war in the country and effused: “It’s great to be in Libya, free Libya.”
Like Scipio Africanus the Younger almost twenty-two centuries earlier in what is now Libya’s western neighbor Tunisia, then Carthage, Rasmussen planted the banner of a conquering power on the soil of North Africa. Perhaps NATO will grant Rasmussen, too, the honorific agnomen Africanus after the military bloc’s first war and first conquest on the continent.
While basking in the triumph of what Western commentators have celebrated as NATO’s first complete and uncontested military victory – “the most successful in Nato history” in Rasmussen’s words – in the Libyan capital, the secretary general was questioned by a reporter about plans to replicate the Libyan model in Syria and stated: “My answer is very short. NATO has no intention (to intervene) whatsoever. I can completely rule that out.”
However, to belie his claim he immediately added: “Having said that, I strongly condemn the crackdown on the civilian population in Syria. What has happened in Libya sends a clear signal. You cannot neglect the will of the people.”
The 227-day war against Libya waged first by U.S. Africa Command from March 19-31 and thereafter by NATO is, according to the NATO chieftain, “a clear signal” to Syria, but “NATO has no intention” to commence military actions against Syria. Scant assurance to the nation’s government and populace alike, to be sure.
On the day Muammar Gaddafi was brutally killed, Senator John McCain, ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and presidential candidate in 2008, threatened the president of Syria, the prime minister of Russia and unnamed Chinese leaders with the less than eloquent admonition that they “got a reason to be uneasy” according to one account. He told the BBC on October 20: “I think dictators all over the world, including Bashar al-Assad, maybe even Mr. Putin, maybe some Chinese, maybe all of them, may be a little bit more nervous.” He repeated the parallel between Libya and Syria three days later while in Jordan.
Had Rasmussen been someone other than who he is, which is to say an honest individual, his comments in the Libyan capital would have been limited to the line of Tacitus about a Roman campaign in the century following the Third Punic War: Auferre, trucidare, rapere, falsis nominibus imperium; atque, ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem appellant. (They plunder, they slaughter, and they steal: this they falsely name Empire, and where they make a wasteland, they call it peace.) Libya has been destroyed. What is left of the city of Sirte presents a vivid image that suits all too well the Roman historian’s words.
Back at home in NATO Headquarters in Brussels three days later, Rasmussen gave his latest monthly press briefing, in which he stated:
“Let me stress that NATO has no intention whatsoever to intervene in Iran, and NATO is not engaged as an alliance in the Iran question.”
He began his comments with this account: “This week I had the privilege to visit Tripoli, the capital of free Libya. It was the first time ever that a NATO Secretary General set foot in the country and something none of us could have imagined only a year ago.”
During the question and answer period which succeeded his presentation he responded to a question on Libya by stating:
“We would be prepared to offer the same kind of assistance as we have offered to other partners within defence and security sector reforms. That is, overall to help put defence and security agencies under civilian and democratic control. We can also help in organizing a modern defence, modern structures. In more specific terms we can help when it comes to institution-building like the building of a defence ministry, how to organize General Staff of the Armed Forces, just to mention some examples.
“NATO has a lot of expertise within defence and security sector reform, and actually a number of our Allies have gone through a similar transition from dictatorship into democracy, so they have a very valuable experience to offer. And I talked with Chairman Jalil and made clear that we are ready to assist Libya within such reform efforts if requested…”
Given the alliance’s history over the past twenty years, what he in fact pledged was that NATO will train – from scratch and in English – the armed forces of the new Libyan proxy regime as it has done previously and is still engaged in doing in other nations and provinces it has invaded and in other manners subjugated: Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Afghanistan and Iraq.
Libya, which until now has been the only North African nation not to be pulled into NATO’s Mediterranean Dialogue military partnership – Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria are members as are Israel, Jordan and Mauritania – will become the eighth member and a joint asset of NATO and U.S. Africa Command.
The chief of what is not only the sole extant military bloc in the world but the largest and longest-lived multinational armed alliance in history may have taken to issuing regular disclaimers concerning attacking new nations well outside the so-called Euro-Atlantic zone, but how much credence the secretary general’s pronouncements should be given is best indicated by how unconscionably NATO lied its way into full-fledged wars in three continents over the past twelve years.
With 28 full members at present, after a 75 per cent increase between 1999-2009, and over 40 partners around the world, the North Atlantic bloc has integrated the militaries of a third of the world’s nations for deployments to war and post-war zones in the Balkans and South Asia, with Africa the next destination.
Its latest trophy is the battered, bloodied and brutalized body of Muammar Gaddafi, murdered after a U.S. Hellfire missile and French laser-guided bombs struck his convoy outside Sirte on October 20, eight months before what would have been his seventieth birthday. So bereft of the most elementary notions of decency and values, moral and aesthetic, are the governments of the West and the people they deserve (as a British writer a century ago reversed the well-known dictum of Joseph de Maistre), that the only stimulants left to awaken their satiated and dehumanized sensibilities are – as they are inured to violence, even on a mass scale – necrophilia and fiendish, ghoulish Grand Guignol. The lower tier of American culture, mass-market escapist entertainment, is consumed by a fascination with vampires, flesh-eating zombies and the like and graphic depictions of foreign leaders and former leaders being mauled and murdered are simply more lurid diversions for jaded ennuyés.
In reference to the murder of Gaddafi and his son Muatassim, the public display of their corpses and the sports enthusiast-like celebration of those gruesome acts by the likes of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Russian representative to NATO Dmitry Rogozin lambasted them as emblematic of sadistic triumphalism, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin denounced them as disgusting and Deputy Speaker of the State Duma Ivan Melnikov characterized the first as “a striking illustration of American and their NATO allies’ policy in the North-African country,” according to Interfax in the third instance.
They are in fact grotesque, in the sense that Hegel defined the word, as the idealization of the ugly.
In his own words, the last-cited Russian official warned: “I think that the entire world should watch today the published photographs and video records of Gaddafi’s murder. It is not just a dead former leader of Libya. It’s the symbol of the sovereignty of an independent country that was torn to pieces by Americans.”
The day after Gaddafi’s murder the same news agency cited another deputy of the lower house of parliament of the same, Communist, party, Vadim Solovyov, as affirming: “The American economy is in need of inexpensive oil, so the U.S. government is even ready to wage wars, if only oil arrives…Any country with large reserves of energy resources – Iran, Syria, Venezuela or Nigeria – could come next.”
NATO ground, air and naval forces continue their murderous rampages in Afghanistan, across the border into Pakistan, in Kosovska Mitrovica, in Libya and off the coast of Somalia in the Gulf of Aden and adjoining waters (where NATO killed the captain of a Taiwanese fishing vessel and wounded two Iranian fishermen in separate attacks earlier this year).
A Stop NATO feature in August provided an, admittedly incomplete, list of nations that NATO, actuated by its first Strategic Concept for the 21st century adopted at the bloc’s summit in Lisbon last November and its initial implementation in Libya this year, could attack or otherwise intervene in next: Algeria, Belarus, Bolivia, Central African Republic, Chad, Cuba, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cyprus, Ecuador, Eritrea, Iran, Lebanon, Madagascar, Mali, Moldova-Transdniester, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Palestine, Somalia, the South Caucasus (Abkhazia, Nagorno-Karabakh, South Ossetia), Sudan-South Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Uganda, Venezuela, Western Sahara, Yemen and Zimbabwe.
In the interim the Obama administration announced the deployment of special forces to four of the above nations and on the day of Gaddafi’s murder the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s subcommittee on African affairs, Senator Chris Coons, was reported by Associated Press as asserting that “Moammar Gadhafi’s death and the promise of a new Libyan regime are arguments for the measured U.S. military response in central Africa where the U.S. has sent roughly 100 troops” to Uganda, Congo, the Central African Republic and South Sudan.
That the nations of the world require almost daily assurances, however untrustworthy, that they will not be attacked by the mightiest multinational military formation in history is an indictment of the age that submits to living under such ongoing and ubiquitous threats. The time is ripe and in fact long overdue for issuing a call for an international anti-NATO initiative addressed to individuals, organizations, political parties and governments to convene an extraordinary session of the United Nations General Assembly to demand the disbanding of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as a – as the gravest – threat to world peace.
November 5th, 2011, 12:27 pm
jna said:
Re: #392
Sources: Workers in Factories of the Ministry of Defense in Sayyedah Zeinab, Damascus will continue to work full time through the holdiay.
They are under time pressure to deliver a large order of blue uniforms with Anti-Riot-Police logo, to be soon used by Asad army and security forces!
Good planning by the government. If the army is withdrawn from the cities security must be beefed up to protect the people from the terror thug groups.
November 5th, 2011, 12:28 pm
Tara said:
The Prime Minister and the Sunnis
Published: November 4, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/05/opinion/prime-minister-maliki-and-the-sunnis.html
The authoritarian tendencies of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki of Iraq are well known. But the arrest of more than 600 Iraqis whom the government describes as suspected former members of Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party and army is particularly cynical and reckless. With American troops scheduled to withdraw by year’s end, the last thing Mr. Maliki should be doing is stoking sectarian tensions.
As Andrew E. Kramer reported in The Times, the detainees — a vast majority are assumed to be Sunnis — were rounded up after the Shiite-controlled government supposedly received a tip from the new interim leaders in Libya that former Baathists were plotting a coup.
Some political leaders have discussed replacing Mr. Maliki through a no-confidence vote. The government has yet to provide any real evidence of a plot, and the idea that 600 people were involved strains credulity. American officials are highly skeptical.
The majority Shiites were badly persecuted under Saddam Hussein’s Sunni-led regime. Post-Saddam governments have all been Shiite-dominated and far more interested in payback than inclusion. If Mr. Maliki has proof that any detainees committed real crimes, they should be prosecuted in a just and transparent process. Otherwise, he should release them.
All Iraqis have reason to be unhappy with Mr. Maliki. A report in September by the International Crisis Group describes his government as riddled with corruption, lacking credibility, showing “authoritarian tendencies,” and contributing to a “severe decay in public services.”
The record with the Sunnis is especially bad. The government promised jobs to 100,000 members of the Sunni Awakening Councils — insurgents whose decision to switch sides helped end the civil war — but only half that number have been hired. Sunnis do lead a few high-profile ministries but don’t have nearly the clout they expected after their bloc won the most votes in the 2010 election.
The Bush-era Coalition Provisional Authority that initially ran postwar Iraq disbanded the army and barred most Baath Party members from government jobs. A law passed in 2008 was intended to promote reconciliation by opening jobs to former Baathists. But it has been applied in a selec